The Fourth Sapling
by brindani
Summary: Born male, Ranma was rejected as the fourth candidate for Noir. Now that he has the Jusenkyo curse...
1. The Revelation

Author's notes: Weebee and recently Porthos112 have very kindly in reviewed through these previous chapters. I've made a few revisions myself (nearly 600 words added!) so hopefully the chapter is better for it.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 1: The Revelation

The crisp morning air hung silently in Nerima, interrupted only by the sporadic bird's celebration to the new day. The sun's weak rays were barely cresting the roof tops, dragging reluctant residence from their pleasant dreams. It was in this calming scene that a blurred form rushed from roof to roof causing the occasional crow to blink in surprise. It was all par the norm for Nerima. For a brief moment the form stopped, resolving itself. Distinctive red Chinese clothes ruffled from their recent extreme means of transportation. The boy wearing these clothes was none other than Ranma Saotome watching the sporadic pedestrian straggling along on the streets below.

"Oh man, I'm so late for school because of that uncute tomboy," Ranma said as he once again blurred from the scene, on a direct course for school. At least that was the intention. Such intentions never last long in the city Murphy chose to reside in for his afterlife.

"STOP! PLEASE, SOMEONE HELP ME!"

Skidding to a halt, Ranma's eyes darted to the left towards the run down part of town. He frowned only a moment at the bank clock flashed 7:49.

'Looks like I'm going to be late again. Oh well, it's a martial artist's duty to help the weak.' Ranma thought briefly, leaping away to help whoever may be in trouble this time. It didn't take long before he landed on the edge of a roof. Looking over the side, his face curled in disgust. A group of four youths wielding bats and crowbars surrounded a cowering school girl. The fearful schoolgirl edged away from the lecherous grins the boys were giving her.

"Come on sweetheart, we just want ta have some fun with ya."

"We ain't goin' ta hurt ya none, that is if yer a good little girl," this from the high school student judging by his soiled uniform. Seeing the girl back into a corner, tears streaming down her cheeks as the chucking youths moved in shook Ranma out of his sickened stupor.

Silently, the martial artists slipped off the roof, landing silently behind the thugs as their dirt covered hands reached towards the cringing girl.

"I would stop that if I were you," Ranma spoke softly, his face showing none of the disgust he felt.

"What the? Who the hell ya think you's talkin' to, twerp?" asked the startled leader as he turned to face the unexpected interloper.

"RANMA! HELP ME!" The girl managed through her sobs as she recognized the new arrival.

Ranma blinked, the girl knew his name? Ignoring the threatening gestures directed his way, Ranma took a closer look. Nothing about the girl's disarrayed mousy brown hair stood out. It appeared like countless others he had seen at school. The uniform he did recognize as a Furinkan girls outfit, but aside from that, he didn't recognize her.

"Well, _Ranma…_" started the leader, his jaw jutting out as he patronized the younger man. "…be a good little boy and totter off while the real men play with this pretty piece of meat," he finished, jabbing his thumb towards the disheveled girl crouched behind them.

Ranma blinked in confusion before a cocky grin spread on his face. "No, I think I'll stick around to teach you _real men_ a lesson," Ranma said, giving his most insufferable smirk while he cracked his knuckles.

Less than impressed by the younger man's display of bravo, the leader frowned. "In that case…" He whipped his bat around at Ranma's head.

Ranma scoffed at the uncoordinated slow attack, easily ducking underneath, going straight through the young man's non-existent guard, grabbing his still swinging arm and lightly throwing the kid across the alley. With a loud crack, the boy hit the opposite building.

The boy's pride was more bruised then his body. Lifting his head back up, the boy shook with fury. "Get'em," he yelled, pointing at Ranma.

Two thugs charged Ranma's right flank while the other tried to blind side him from the left. "Humff, you guys are truly pathetic, you know that?" he asked as he casually ducked in-between the middle of the two on the right, both of their swings went wide, while the person trying to attack his left slammed his associate in the stomach, leaving him doubled over, groaning.

"What are you guys waiting for? Take that fucker down!" The leader demanded as he himself regained his footing, stumbling towards the one man massacre with his bat.

"You guys just don't know how out classed you are, do you?" Ranma asked as he turned towards the leader.

"What ya say, brat? We are gonna pound ya."

Ranma only shrugged his shoulders before taking stock of the situation. One guy clutched his stomach, the bat that hit him in the hands of his friend trying to circle around him again. 'Should I play with them or not?' Ranma mused before hearing the far off sound he had been dreading.

DING, DING, DING.

"Damn! Now I'm late for school too," Ranma exclaimed in frustration.

After the gangsters picked themselves off of the pavement from their group face fault, they rushed Ranma from all sides. Ranma struck with lightning speed; his right fist lashing out to strike the assailant in front. Simultaneously he struck the one behind with a back kick to the stomach before leaping off with his free foot, barely avoiding the swing from the gang leader. Ranma twisted in mid-air landing on his last remaining opponent's back. With a quick small pivot, Ranma threw his opponent against the far wall. The unconscious body slumped to the ground, showing no signs of consciousness.

Ranma dusted his palms off, casually eyeing the motionless bodies surrounding him. His cursory observation led to the last gangster still conscious, the one who had just barely regained his wind after being pole-axed by his fellow delinquent. His eyes were wide as he found himself surrounded by his friends. Those same eyes frozen in horror as they locked onto Ranma's visage, a yellow stream appeared, forming a small puddle around his shoe as it continued to roll down his pant leg.

Ranma smirked briefly. He stepped forward menacingly. Ranma reached down, pulling the high-schooler off of the ground, looked him directly in the eye and…

"Boo."

"AAAAHHHHH!" a girlish scream issued from the thug, echoing through the alley before the youth's eyes rolled back into his head, slumping out of Ranma's loosened grasp.

"Always wanted to try that," Ranma said with a small smile.

"RANMA!" said boy grunted under an Amazon grade glomp.

"O…kay, it's alright. See?" Ranma said, making wild gestures towards the pile of bodies lying around them. "I took care of those guys."

Tentatively, the girl released her hold on Ranma; looking for herself, finding only bruised and ragged bodies in place of her menacing assailants of moments ago.

"Th…thank you, Ranma. I thought they would… would," the girl hiccupped, tears streaming down her face. Her cheeks flushed bright red before she buried herself into her rescuer's shoulder.

"It's alright, really. You don't have to cry any more," Ranma said, starting to panic. When a girl hugged or cried on him, a blunt object always seemed to follow closely behind.

Feeling Ranma stiffen, the girl restrained herself, hesitantly pulling away from the sense of peace she felt in his reluctant hold. "I'm sorry, Ranma. I know how your life usually handles these kinds of situations," the girl said, furiously wiping away tears.

Curious, Ranma took another look at the girl before him. He had seen her before, but couldn't quite place her. "Do I know you from somewhere? Pops didn't engage us, did he?"

The girl blinked back the tears, startled by the idea as rosy blush covered her cheeks. "No, I'm Yuriko, Nabiki's friend."

Ranma snapped his fingers as he made the connection. "Oh yeah, I've seen you and her talk sometimes." Ranma felt awkward as the girl stared at him expectantly, sniffing silently. "Um… are you ok to go to school now?" Ranma finished, suppressing the desire to bolt under that intense gaze.

"Ok…yhAAA!" Yuriko suddenly found herself flying through the air as Ranma carried the girl bridal style. Going at speeds she previously thought impossible, Yuriko clutched Ranma's neck for dear life as said martial artist lightly hopped from roof to roof, making record time to school. With one last giant leap, Ranma landed, silently depositing Yuriko on the ground. It only took thirty seconds for the girl to realize she was no longer flying through the air. In another fifteen seconds she stumbled back, releasing death grip she had unknowingly held on Ranma.

"Uhhh… I guess I'll see ya," Ranma said, waving. Two giant leaps led the pigtailed youth directly through his classroom window.

Yuriko blinked at the abrupt departure followed shortly by the next sound to shatter the relative calm of the morning.

"RANMA, YOU IDIOT!"

* * *

Ranma's day proceeded exactly as it did most days. The basic itinerary was easily summarized by a series of events: Sleeping in class, being hit by the Tomboy, holding buckets, being hit by the Tomboy, sneaking lunch through the teachers monotone voice, being hit by the Tomboy, uber-glomp by an amorous Amazon, and being hit by the tomboy.

All in all a perfectly ordinary beginning to the school day. At least until after he woke up in the branches of a tree. The last thing he remembered was Akane's furious fist of frightful fury flashing before his vision. Quite preferable compared to the alternative of eating the biohazard known in Akaneez as 'The greatest food in existence'.

The tree was a little different at least, usually he ended up in a fountain or pond. Shaking his head a couple of times to stop the dizziness, Ranma noticed, through the thick foliage, a congregation of girls below him. His eyes opened wide as several basic formulas ran through his mind.

Girls plus Meeting equals Head Trauma

Ranma blinked. Now that he thought about it, Girls plus Anything equals Head Trauma. This was especially true in cases where said girls happened to find out that someone not invited was eavesdropping which, with Ranma's luck, was almost a given.

Quietly, he squatted down on the branch ready to leap to the nearby roof and relative safety when he happened to overhear snippet of the conversation drift up from below.

"Ok girls, I've developed the next load of pictures. That includes several premium shots of both his forms in the furo. I expect those to be sold for double the price. There should be plenty of copies to sale, but I can get more if sales are higher than usual. Are there any questions?" Ranma crouched back to the tree limb he was about to vacate.

'That voice sounded familiar.' Ranma thought, before taking a closer looking. Finding one of the girls waving a large envelope in the air, his eyes opened wide, Nabiki Tendo.

'Don't tell me she's selling those things again,' Ranma thought with a scowl.

"I don't think we should sell pictures of Ranma anymore," Ranma's head swung around to the squeak of a protest from the outskirts of the group. All twelve eyes, including Ranma's, locked onto a quivering mousy brown haired girl.

'Yuriko?' Ranma thought, quickly recognizing the girl he had saved earlier. He frowned as the girl's shaking intensified under the penetrating gaze Nabiki shot her with.

"What did you say, Yuriko?" Nabiki asked, her voiced etched with a frosty calm.

"Ranma saved me this morning so I thought tha…"

"That Ranma doesn't deserve it. Is that what you were going to say?" Nabiki sneered, slowly advancing on the hapless girl. "Whether he deserves it or not isn't your concern. All you have to worry about is charging students the prices I tell you to for them. They pay big bucks for these pictures and I. Will. Cash. In." She emphasized each word, her eyes mere slits as she hovered above Yuriko's cowering form.

In an instant, Nabiki turned her back on the poor girl, waving her hand in a shooing gesture, her voice deceptively nonchalant. "If you don't like it, you can take your leave. I'm sure that you don't need the extra money. Perhaps your family won't mind the loss?" Yuriko's face fell, a tear hidden by her flushed face.

Silence hung in the air as the girls looked back and forth, most showing a thread of pity for the timid girl.

"Now, if that is settled…" Nabiki shot another hard glare at Yuriko bowed form. "Ladies, take your positions for this afternoon's picture sale," Nabiki finished handing the large packet to her second in command. Walking away, Nabiki barely concealed her triumphant smile.

Several of the girls exchanged hesitant looks. Reluctantly, each walked to the one holding the packet to take their share of the load. The blond haired girl holding them, sighed as she opened the packet, reached in. Her withdrawn expression transformed into a frown as she frantically probed the contents of the packet. She removed her hand and looked in, a dumbfounded expression rapidly developing on her face.

"What happened to all the pictures?" She asked as she reinserted her hand to verify what her eyes told her. Still feeling nothing, she turned it upside down and shook. A single picture of Ranma's girl side lazily floated to the ground.

The girls exchanged a confused look. When they returned their gaze to the ground, they found that the lone picture had disappeared as well. Startled, each girl darted glances around only to find a handful of trees surrounding them.

"Ok, who is going to tell the boss that the pictures disappeared?" a nervous voice asked. Realization of their predicament spread like wildfire, their eyes widening dramatically. The blond, there was a reason she was second in command, got a sly expression as she turned her hazel eyes on Yuriko. Catching on, the others did likewise.

"Oh, no. Not me!"

* * *

On the rooftop, Ranma shuddered as he pulled more pictures out of his pockets. Many of the photos depicted his girl side half naked while he slept. All those wet spots when he woke up suddenly started making sense. Nabiki had been taking advantage of his deep sleeping habits and changing him to take some risqué photos. Several of him training, a couple were even from the furo. Ranma started tearing the pictures apart as fast as he could.

"She even took some of Akane working out," Ranma mumbled to himself as he glanced through several. Sending tiny motes that represented the photo's remains off into the wind, Ranma lightly felt his pockets. Not feeling anymore of the pictures he had hastily stuffed in them while the girls were distracted, Ranma whipped his brow. 'For once I managed to stop the pictures in advanced.'

A small smirk appeared as he allowed the refreshing wind to flit through his hair. 'Maybe I should try that again sometime. Would save me a major headache later when people want them autographed.' Ranma shuddered as he remembered the incident where a small gaggle of girls swarmed him, waving very explicit photos in his face, fishing for a signature. Not that he cared, but he doubted they had forgiven him yet for ripping the things up.

* * *

Ranma whistled as he walked home by his favorite median, the fence. Aside from the standard half dozen hits by the Tomboy, it was turning out to be a good day so far. He help someone who needed saving and he was able to stop Nabiki from selling his pictures. As a bonus, he hadn't been challenged by some martial art wacko. Truly, Ranma couldn't think of anything that could ruin his day.

Thunder rumbled ominously above.

Casually hopping off the fence, Ranma opened the front door of the Tendo Dojo and walked in.

"I'm home." He called out as he removed his shoes, casually noticing he was the first home as he stepped into the house.

"Welcome home, Ranma," Kasumi's gentle greeted him, drifting from the kitchen. At least Kasumi always welcomed him home even if few of the other residents ever noticed.

Strolling into the living room, he flopped back onto the sofa. Ranma allowed himself to put his feet up and relax. He had at least fifteen minutes before his idiot father found him and declared him slacking off, initiating the next bout of practice. Without the constant bickering of the other residence, it was almost… peaceful. It was a concept that had eluded the pigtailed martial artist throughout his life. As will all such restful times, his relaxation was interrupted by another source of frustration in his life.

"Saotome, you look like you're in a good mood. Something happen recently? A new fiancée perhaps?" Nabiki asked causally as she sat in the chair across from him.

Ranma's eyes widened at the idea. "No! There hasn't been any new fiancées. I'm just happy, ok?"

"Right" Nabiki drawled as she flipped on the TV and began to channel surf. Relieved that one of the biggest headaches in his life wasn't paying attention to him, Ranma lay back, attempting to capture that elusive feeling of peace.

"I heard that you saved Yuriko today," Nabiki monotone voice said, not looking away from the television.

Sighing in frustration, Ranma didn't bother to reopen his eyes. "Yeah, I helped her out."

"Hummm, I guess that reaffirms your code of honor or something?"

"Yup, it's a martial artists duty to protect the weak," Ranma said proudly, the little reminder helping to lighten his mood.

"Ha, that's a laugh, Saotome."

Loosing that satisfying sense of accomplishment, Ranma sent an annoyed glance at Nabiki. "What do you mean?"

"You help one person and you think you're some kind of super hero that protects all us poor weak little humans." Nabiki said in a condescending voice. "Well here's a wake-up call; you aren't." Nabiki aimed the remote at the TV, turning the volume up.

"…These horrific images were taken by spy satellites just hours ago sent to us by an anonymous source. As you can see villagers are being lined up and shot, sources tell us these are people and their families that were once apart of the old government. Those few we were able to interview say that such executions have become all too common since the recent hostile take over. The situation is, of course, complicated further by several nuclear weapons recently acquired by this militant faction. The UN has demanded that the country disarm, but no substantial action has been taken.

And now for the weather…"

"Do you understand now?" Nabiki asked as she muted the TV. "You can pretend all you want, but your vaunted martial arts will never be do anything beyond helping a person or two." She paused, savoring Ranma's stunned countenance with a smirk. "So much for the greatest martial artist in the world," Nabiki muttered dismissing Ranma in favor of flipping through channels once more.

Ranma sat frozen on the sofa. Eleven long years. That is how long he had spent training, shaping his body to become the best, to uphold the honor of being a martial artist. He was to protect those who could not protect themselves. Now he found that all his effort wasted.

Every channel Nabiki flipped seemed to have picture after picture of the massacre; the massacre he had absolutely no power to stop.

He never even noticed Akane hesitantly enter the room with a strained look as she approached Nabiki.

"Nabiki? Could I borrow some money? The girls and I are going to get some ice cream and I'm running low for the week," Akane asked, setting her school bag down by the couch.

"Sure, Sis. I'd love to loan you some money; at 15 interest compounded hourly," Nabiki replied, a shark's grin making a quick appearance.

Akane rolled her eyes. "I should have known better." Turning to Ranma, Akane continued. "How about you, Ranma? Ranma?" Akane asked the still stunned martial artist.

"What?" Ranma asked, his dazed gaze turning to Akane.

"Could I borrow a couple hundred of yen?" She asked, ignoring the glazed eyes in favor of some time with her friends and a banana split.

"Sure." Ranma slipped his hand into his pocket, pulling out several bills before handing them to Akane.

"Thanks Ranm… YOU PERVERT!" Akane exclaimed, as she uncovered two pictures infolded within the bills.

Startled, Ranma jerked around. He groaned when he noticed the picture of his girl side and another of Akane just stepping out of the furo. Ranma foresaw his good day going sour real quick.

SWAK!

* * *

Ranma groaned as awareness brought a massive headache for the ride. Tentatively reaching a hand to his head, he hissed as they brushed several prevalent lumps. The headache only became worse as he opened his eyes. They snapped shut quickly, only informing him that he now lay prone on a futon in his room.

"I see that you are awake, Saotome," Ranma groan grew deeper as he recognized the voice's owner. The day just got a _lot_ worse.

"What do you want, Nabiki?" Ranma asked tentatively against his pounding headache.

"You've stolen my property, Saotome. I expect payment."

"What do you mean? I haven't stolen anything."

"Humph, I know you didn't buy those pictures you gave Akane. Add that to the mysterious disappearance of my pictures today means you must have stolen them. Of course, I'm willing to be nice and let you off the hook for twice the price of each picture."

"What!" Ranma exclaimed, wishing he hadn't immediately as the pain shot through his mind. Much more slowly, Ranma sat up and opened his eyes to face a hard edged Nabiki in full business mode. "Those pictures were of me. How can you charge me for something you took of me, especially without my permission?"

"Easy, since the day you set foot into this house you have been nothing but a freeloader with an appetite. To offset your black hole of a stomach, I've been selling pictures. Until you start pulling in money to help with the damages, maintenance, and of course room and board, I will keep doing so. Until that long awaited day, everything about you that I can exploit belongs to me. I'll be expecting the first installment with a voluntary photo shoot tomorrow after school."

Ranma opened his mouth to reply, but before he could, the doors slammed open. Genma barged in, fist raised.

"Boy, you've been slacking again!" He yelled, grabbing Ranma by his shirt, throwing him out the window before jumping out himself.

Nabiki gave a disdainful snort as she heard the sounds of two bodies landing predictably in the koi pond. 'At least the window was open this time.'

* * *

As usual, their workout was long and tiring and ended with meditation/balance practice a.k.a meditating on their heads.

"Hey Pops."

"What is it, boy?" Genma asked, his eyes remaining closed.

"You are always saying that it's a martial artist's duty to help the weak, right?"

"Yes, that is the primary ideal of the art."

Ranma frowned, appearing like an odd smile in his current position.

"What about people in other countries?"

"Nationality doesn't matter, Boy. If someone is in trouble, a martial artist should be there," Genma said in his typical high and mighty tone.

"What about wars? What about all of those people in wars that are hurt?"

Genma's arm slowly retracted itself from the air, tucking itself in with its opposite. For a minute, Genma sat there as if in deep thought.

"Boy, there comes a time when a martial artist must become more than a martial artist to help the masses."

"More than a martial artist? What do you mean Pops?"

"If you become powerful enough, you will be able to help those people."

"What do you mean power? I'm already the best there is," Ranma said, some of his old cockiness coming into play.

Genma's eyes scrunched up before his nose twitched once, twice and his eyes flew open. "Dinner time, Boy." A dust cloud replaced his father.

"Try to have a serious conversation for once and this is where it gets you," Ranma muttered to himself as he casually upended himself before hurrying after his father. After all, dinner was calling and he didn't want Pop's stomach to answer for him.

Altena unrolled the scroll onto the top of her writing desk. It was a well worn document that she had read many times since it arrived the day before.

"It appears that the Fourth Sapling has become viable… Ranma Saotome." She whispered to herself with a small, half formed, smile.

* * *

Author's end notes: This is one of the few fics I've made that I really don't have a preference on pairing. This being the case, I'm leaving it in the hands of the reviewers. You have three options: Ranma/Chloe, Ranma/Mereille, or Ranma/Kirika. Be careful how you choose as the results can drastically alter how the story continues.

Thanks for reading,

brindani


	2. Photo Phobia

Author's notes: Wow, I'm amazed by the response to this story. Thirty-two reviews. As I've stated in my previous fictions, the more reviews, the faster I turn out chapters. That being the case I've completed chapter two in what for me is record time.

If you haven't voted, this will be your final chance to have a say on the matchings. After chapter 3, the vote will be closed.

A special thanks goes to Cylon One and Akuma-Sama for helping to point out problems and offer solutions for the last chapter.

A great thanks goes to Weebee who has taken the time to review my earlier chapters and I've made a few revisions myself.

Disclamer: Still don't own either Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 2: Photo-phobia

A mob of students poured through the school doors as the final bell resounded in the background. Groups gathered with happy smiles, everyone relieved that the worst part of the day was finally over. At least this was true for most of the students. One student was not so happy. She stood near the exit of the school with a scowl predominant on her face. This student, Nabiki Tendo, was not in a good mood. She tapped her foot impatiently, her eyes scanning every inch of the area, giving a dark glare to any student that dared meet her scathing gaze.

'Where is that idiot! It's been three days and I still haven't been able to corner the stupid buffoon once.' Nabiki grumbled as her critical eye tried to trace out any flash of red or pigtail. She spotted a couple of the latter, but these belonged to a bunch of hero worshiping copycats, nothing worth her notice.

Glancing at her watch, the middle Tendo growled in aggravation. 'I've got other places to be. Damn you, Saotome. I'll add another 1,000 Yen to your account for this. Just you wait; you can't avoid me forever.'

Spinning around, Nabiki stomped away, acting as a veritable Moses to all those before her without a death wish.

Once out of sight, the foliage above where Nabiki once stood shook. A small section separated revealing two brilliant blue eyes, keeping a steady bead on Nabiki as she rounded the corner. Even after Nabiki disappeared from sight, the eyes continued to move as if tracing the money mongering Tendo's path. After several minutes the eyes closed and a relieved sigh emanated from the tree. No one really noticed the disembodied sound. There were far too many high pitched squeals, giggles and general conversation for anyone to hear such a tiny mote of noise.

Half an hour later, everyone had fled from the dreaded institution of learning. Having stood silent all this time, the tree's leaves rustled once more. Tentatively, Ranma's eyes peeked out to survey the grounds. You could never be too careful; one of Nabiki's lackeys could always be hanging around just to spot his most recent hiding spot. He had lost two to that kind of carelessness.

Besides, Ranma liked this spot; the idea that Nabiki's sharp eyes couldn't see him simply because she never looked up was rather funny to him. Ok, it wasn't the greatest humor. After three days of the middle Tendo appearing around every corner had strained Ranma's humor. He would take what he could get.

The constant pressure was starting to get to him. There were countless times he was ready to cave into Nabiki's designs for the damnable photo session. It would certainly relieve stress that he just didn't need. Of course, that was before he found out what kind of photo-shoot she wanted.

Two days ago when he passed Nabiki's opened door, Ranma happened to glance in. What he saw would cause nightmares for the rest of his life. Scattered across the floor outside of her closet was a few bunny suits, maid's uniform, nurse's outfit complete with oversized syringe, and even – gulp - a Sailor Moon suit. Ranma shuddered at that last. Each costume had taken scandalous to a level that would have even a Sailor Scout blushing to their toes. He didn't want to know what else was hiding in that closet or what Akane would do if she ever found out that Ranma had even thought of putting one on.

At school, Ranma discovered that Nabiki had made arrangements with the Anime club to secure a _large_ variety of adult-style cosplay outfits.

So until Nabiki gave up, Ranma was pretty much on the run. He had to admit that he was getting some really good practice with all of the dodging and a great awareness of his surroundings, especially for one Nabiki Tendo and her various lackeys.

After verifying no one was around, Ranma dropped from the tree. Carefully brushing off all the leaves he acquired, Ranma sighed as he started his round about route home.

* * *

Tentatively sticking his head into the guest room's window, Ranma scanned the room critically. He hadn't seen any movement in Nabiki's room. She wasn't down-stairs either so he wasn't sure where she was. That was not good when you were trying to avoid said person. Still, Ranma wanted to change clothes before sparring with Pops. It wouldn't do to get his favorite set too dirty before laundry day.

Certain that the coast was indeed clear, Ranma stepped through the window; tip toeing silently to his pack.

"Saotome, I'm glad you're so punctual for your photo shoot." Ranma spun around straight into a stream of cold water that covered his now female body. Wiping the water from her eyes, she found Nabiki standing behind the closet door with a bunny suit in one hand and a camera in the other. "I've got your first costume all ready for you." Ranma needed no more motivation as she flew through the door and leapt down the stairs.

Genma and Soun glanced at the frantic cursed boy as she looked everywhere for a diversion. Unfortunately for Genma, her eyes zeroed in on him.

"Pops, you're slacking off, we need to do some major training." Ranma jump kicked Genma, sending him flying outside.

Nabiki looked out the window at the sparring duo. "Saotome, get back up here for your photo-shoot now or you'll regret it!" Nabiki yelled. Not seeing any reaction from either of the combatants, Nabiki gnashed her teeth together before turning around. "Fine, if that's the way you want it Saotome, I'll just have to take my recent contact's advice and level the playing field."

Once Nabiki left the window, the combat cooled to a light spar.

"Boy, what did she mean about your photo-shoot?"

"It's something that she is trying to force me into."

They exchanged a couple more rounds before Genma spoke again. "That one is very like the Master when she is angry, it might be best if you went through with it."

In response Ranma delivered a vicious round house, forcing Genma to hop back. "And have pictures of my girl side in a bunny suit going around school? You got to be kidding." Ranma shuddered dropping her guard just enough to allow a jab to the stomach followed by a sweep kick, sending her to the ground.

Flipping back to her feet, Ranma circled her father. "I see, and why do you think she would do something like that?"

"She had the damn thing in her hand when she jumped out of my closet to _remind_ me of the photo-shoot. I've also seen a lot of other costumes in her closet."

"Perhaps it is best if you avoided the girl. If your Mother ever found a photo like that…" Genma trembled, letting a kick slip past his guard.

"Why is Mom so hung up about me being manly anyway?" Ranma asked as he ducked under a front kick. "She nearly had a conniption fit when she found out about my curse and whenever she comes across my female form; she always has hot water to turn me back."

"Your Mother is just… concerned about several events from the past." Genma replied as he jumped over a back kick.

"Great, what did you sell me for this time Pops?"

"Believe it or not boy, I had nothing to do with it. Your Mother simply couldn't stand it."

"So what was the deal Mom made?" Ranma asked, curious what happened.

"That I can not tell you; that past is best left forgotten."

* * *

Nabiki grinned as she stopped in front of the Cat Café. "If Ranma thinks he can fool around with the Ice Queen, he has another thing coming." Walking into the shop, she was greeted by Shampoo's back as she dashed from table to table, snatching flying bowls from the air.

Most of the customers came just for the spectacle. Personally, Nabiki thought that the male half came simply because the Amazons apparently had never heard of the revelation of _support_. Then again, maybe they had and didn't use it on purpose; a perverted customer was still a paying customer and business was booming.

"Nihao, please take open seat," Shampoo cried when the bells rang as she dashed after a beef ramen special coming out of left field.

Nabiki rolled her eyes before taking a seat near the back.

It didn't take long before Shampoo bounced up to her table. "Can take your order? Oh, is Mercenary girl. What want from Shampoo?" She asked as she kept a wary eye on the kitchen counter for any incoming dishes.

"I just need to talk to Cologne, Shampoo." Shampoo wiped her brow in relief.

"That make things too too much easier." Shampoo mumbled before calling over her shoulder. "Great-grandmother, Mercenary girl here see you." Shampoo then walked at a relaxed pace to take the next table's order.

Moments later, what could best be described as a wrinkled shaven monkey came hopping out of the kitchen, stopping in front of Nabiki's table. "Nabiki, it has been a long time. I assume this is not a social visit."

"Of course, Honored Elder." Nabiki replied, with her trademark grin.

Cologne raised a brow. It was not often someone gave her such distinction in this country and when they did, it usually meant they wanted something.

"What can this Old Woman do for you?"

"I've actually come to help you." Nabiki replied, leaning back in her chair.

"Really, how could you do that?"

"I'm hurt, I've come with a warning. People have been talking recently about the Amazons concerning the recent accumulation of property damage." Nabiki answered with a casual shrug.

"As far as I've seen, the damage we do is rather nominal for this area."

"You are quite correct. Ever since Ranma showed up…" Nabiki's lip twisted into a small snarl. "…there has been a lot more property damage. Unfortunately, Shampoo has been a little exuberant lately and damaged property belonging to several officials. They have discovered who was responsible and have steadily been gathering information about you."

"And what matter is that to us?" Cologne asked in what, to the typical spectator, appeared a disinterested voice. Nabiki, hardly the typical spectator, could see the older woman understood the implications. Deciding to humor her, Nabiki continued.

"They found out that you do not have the proper paper work for being here or for operating a business. They have started the process to export both of you."

"Have they now, and what makes you think some weak males could force us to leave?"

"The local authorities will not be able to force you, but when they fail, it will attract attention from the higher ranks. As the matriarch for your village, I doubt you want a whole nation looking over your shoulder. That would make it very difficult to catch a certain pigtailed martial artist for your tribe."

"You have my attention young one. Obviously you have a proposal."

"As always, you are very astute, Elder. Through my dealings, I've become very knowledgeable about the intricacies of the Japanese political environment. It would be a small matter for me to arrange a change of status for both you and Shampoo through my recent contacts. You could go from illegal aliens to ambassadors of China with full immunity from the law. It wouldn't be permanent, but it would take years for the current administration to straighten out the mess. With a subtle hand, it could last as long as you like."

"That is a very interesting and generous offer, but you have not mentioned what this humble old woman could do for you in return."

"Oh yes. How forgetful of me. It is a very simple matter for one of your exceptional ability. Ranma owes me a large debt which he has been unable to pay. I have offered him a harmless alternative, but he has been very, shall we say, reticent to comply. As a simple girl, I am virtually helpless in the face of his extraordinary ability. I was hoping that you may be able to help him reconsider his dishonorable avoidance of a debt."

Cologne sat smoking on her pipe as she considered the girl before her. "Why?"

"What do you mean, Honored Elder?"

"Why would you help us? We pose a threat to your Sister's claim to Ranma. Why would you go through all the effort of helping us stay when we intend to take the boy away?"

Nabiki gave the older woman a considering look herself before answering. "For as long as I can remember, I have maintained my home and provided for my family's needs. With this recent concept of joining the schools, my task has become more onerous with two more large appetites to feed.

That, of course, is only a present burden, no matter how taxing. As my Mother is not present and my Father has chosen not to provide for the futures of his daughters, I have been forced to take up the task of planning for my family. Taking this into account, I can only judge the match between my little sister and Ranma as disadvantageous. Ranma has neither the education nor the sophistication to manage a business, dojo or otherwise, making him unsuitable as a provider for Akane and whatever children they may have.

I will not dispute his phenomenal skill in the Art, but without the temperance of mind, it equates to little more then a destructive force waiting to be unleashed during moments where a few choice words could diffuse tensions. I've seen it time and time again between him and my sister amongst others.

Your presence as well as Ukyo's, provides an alternative that is more viable for all those involved. Ukyo's business sense has evolved over time. I can tell she is maneuvering to start a chain of what is likely to become a string of very successful okonomiyaki restaurants and will be able to provide for the both of them with Ranma acting as a trophy husband, waitress, or whatever else he may desire to do.

In your case, your village holds the Art in high reverence and he may provide for himself by helping to sire strong daughters and train young warriors. If either can persuade him, it proves a great advantage to everyone.

Does this answer your question, Honored Elder?"

Cologne nodded sagely. "Yes it does, young one. I do believe that we may be able to help each other. How fast can you start the process?"

"Do we have a deal?" Nabiki asked, her hand outstretched.

Without hesitation, Cologne took the offered hand in her own. "Deal."

Retracting her hand, Nabiki flipped her cell phone out. Extending the antenna, she pressed a well worn auto dial. "Yes, you can start." She murmured before hanging up and turning back to Cologne. "You should have ambassador status within the hour and the paperwork should arrive sometime tomorrow morning."

"My, I am impressed. I can see a lot of potential in you. I look forward to the day that we talk as matriarchs of our respective nations." Nabiki flashed a predatory smile before standing up.

'And you will never know just who tipped those people off.' Nabiki thought to herself before exiting the door.

Cologne only shook her head. 'The timing is too convenient. The girl probably told the officials directly. I'll let the girl think she has deceived me. The deal is too good to do otherwise.' With that, Cologne hopped back into the kitchen. Shampoo groaned as twice as many bowls started flying through the air.

* * *

Once again, the school bell rang to end the day, ushering out the resulting stream of chaos known as students. Nabiki casually leaned against the wall next to the front gates of the school. Ranma wore a small smile on his face as he watched her. That smile slowly slipped away. Unlike yesterday, Nabiki didn't seem aggravated at all, which was starting to worry him, but she had done nothing to indicate she had found his hiding spot either.

The only thing Nabiki did over the past ten minutes was to make an occasionally call each lasting a few seconds. Something about those calls made him uncomfortable, but that held true for most things concerning the middle Tendo lately.

This continued for well past the time that everyone had left the school yard. It was starting to concern Ranma. Nabiki wasn't even looking for him. She just leaned against the wall with her eyes closed, without a worry in the world. It was nothing like yesterday. What had changed?

Once the last group of student's left with voices enthusiastically discussing ice cream flavors, Nabiki received one final call.

"Yes, I understand, thank you." Flipping the phone off, Nabiki walked to the edge of the sidewalk and stared straight into his tree. "Time to come down, Saotome. I know you are up there."

"Shoot." Ranma jumped down and started to leap towards the roof tops at high speed. 'How did she find where I was hiding? Did she have a spotter on one of the roofs or something?' Ranma thought to himself as he bounded over the wall in front of the house.

When his foot touched down on the roof, he felt a sharp crack to the skull sending him flying down into the ground. Shakily standing up, Ranma noticed a staff in front of him. Looking up, Ranma found the one person he least wanted to see balanced easily on said staff.

"What are you doing here, Old Ghoul?" Ranma asked, receiving another knock which sent him staggering back.

Gingerly Ranma rubbed his throbbing head. "What did you do that for?!"

"The second was for the ghoul remark. The first was because Nabiki wanted a word with you and you were being disrespectful to leave before hearing her out. Especially when she went to all the trouble of keeping your little tree fort a secret."

"It was you that told her. Didn't you?"

"Indeed, Son-In-Law."

"But why would you do that?"

"Because, Saotome, I made her a generous offer and she accepted." Nabiki said as she walked up to the two conversing martial artists.

"What the heck could you offer the Old Ghoul OUCH! Would you cut that out already you Witch OUCH!"

"Nabiki was quite right; your intelligence leaves a lot to be desired."

"I don't have to take that from you." Ranma glared as he took an offensive stance.

"How many times have we done this Son-In-Law?"

"What does that matter?"

"How many times have you actually won against me?"

"Ranma Saotome never gives up!"

"Of that I do not doubt. You are, however, one hundred years to young to defeat me."

"I've done it before…"

"In the catfist, and with help from my great-grand daughter to reach that state. It appears neither of these is present currently."

"I'll find a way!"

"I would suggest you simply allow Nabiki to take her photos. It might be a little embarrassing to you, but it will be nothing compared to what I can put you through."

It had been a long time since the two had fought. Ranma had experience many things since then and become a lot stronger, but he still didn't like the odds stacked against him. Eyebrows lowered until the germ of an idea flitted across his mind. A technique he had thought of a long time ago that might come in handy.

"I ain't doing it!" Ranma declared defiantly, taking up a combat stance.

"Very well, Son-In-Law, Nabiki has informed me that as long as I don't bruise your face, she can do the photo-shoot while you are unconscious.

Ranma took the initiative as he charged in for close combat. Cologne stood her ground as he approached; only raising an eyebrow at the very foolish approach.

Just before he reached her, Cologne raised her staff to trip the pigtailed martial artist. The last second before the staff hit Ranma's foot, he leapt into the sky, his hands cupped.

Not seeing the expected prone form of Ranma, Cologne looked around for her quarry. Noticing a distinct lack of others on the street, Cologne turned her attention up just as Ranma cried "Moko Takabisha!"

A blue ball of energy raced down on her position. Glancing around, she made sure that Nabiki had taken shelter far away from the battle. 'Smart girl,' Cologne thought, charging her staff with ki before twirling it above her.

The energy blast blazed down and immediately clashed with the staff. Energy splattered off of both for several intense moments before the ball dissipated into thin-air.

"You'll have to use a stronger blast then that to hurt me…Son-In-Law?" Cologne asked, not seeing Ranma. "I see, a diversion." Halfway down the street, Ranma was running full tilt, almost making him appear to blur even to her experienced eyes. "Child's play." Her form blurred from existence.

Ranma ran for all he was worth. Not because he was worried about the Old Ghoul, but to get to a better place to fight. The school had already warned him that any more damage to the grounds would instantly get him expelled. Not a bad thing in his opinion, but it would cause no end of headaches if his parents found out.

Along those lines, he was heading towards a large empty plot of land. He didn't know why there were so many such plots around the ward, but figured it was the city's way of providing fighters a place to battle without tearing up the streets. That was fine by him.

If he had timed his distraction right there should be a… THUNK. Ranma leaped over the staff imbedded in the street landing into the large empty plot of land.

"Your losing your edge, Old Ghoul, I was expecting you seconds ago." Ranma taunted as he watched the old woman retrieve her staff before turning towards him.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Sonny Boy, but you don't warrant my full effort. In a couple of hundred years maybe, but not currently," Cologne commented calmly.

"Well we'll see if I'm worth it or not now."

"You're still far too cocky for your own good, Sonny. I'll have to work that out of you once we get back to China. In fact, I think I'll start now." With that, Cologne disappeared into a flurry of motion, tripping Ranma up sending him straight into the dirt.

"BLAW!" Ranma bellowed trying to remove the taste of dirt from his mouth as he regained his feet. "That was a freebee, Ghoul, but this time I'm serious."

"A freebee, certainly, think of this however you wish, but it will be a bit of a stretch calling it the same thing twenty-five times in a row."

"Just try it, Ghoul."

"Happy to oblige, Son-In-Law."

Cologne disappeared once more.

"One, two, three, and NOW!" Ranma jumped into the air, Cologne simultaneously appearing below him. "Mouko Takabisha revised Bakusai Tenketsu Shatter Storm!" cried Ranma as he flung a flaring blue globe of energy towards Cologne.

"It's all the same attack to me, son-in-law." Cologne commented unconcerned as she recharged her staff for another block. Spinning the staff expertly, it became a veritable shield above her.

"That's what you think, old woman." Ranma said as he altered course in mid-air to land outside of the field.

Not taking any chances, Cologne further charged her staff to take anything that the energy heading her way could dish out. She braced her self for impact as the glowing orb drew near. Cologne gasped as without warning the ball exploded into thousands of small strands of energy that randomly lanced into the earth around her.

"You have got to be kidding me, Son-In-Law. That was the most pathetic…" Cologne stopped as pandemonium erupted in the field. Jagged rocks blew upward, throwing smaller pieces of shrapnel everywhere as a veritable earthquake rocked the land.

It took nearly three minutes for the shaking to stop, and another ten for the dust to settle slightly. By that time, Nabiki had caught up huffing and coughing half from exertion and half from all the dust still thick in the air.

Taking in the deserted lot that lay in tatters, Nabiki shook her head as she noticed that nothing outside of the field seemed to be touched. "Looks like another Ranma special." She mumbled to herself as she stared intently at the dust cover, trying to discern what had happened. Eventually, she made out a small blue-green glow emanating from the center. This slowly developed into the form of Cologne, her face in deep concentration. "I take it Ranma got away," Nabiki coolly mentioned as she approached the elder.

At hearing her voice, the glow disappeared and Cologne reopened her eyes. "Yes, Son-In-Law is as clever as ever. It's been nearly two hundred years since I've had to use that final defense technique and I would never have thought that he would be the one to force its use."

"Will you still be able to help me?" Nabiki asked in a hard tone.

"Don't worry, I let myself get caught off-guard. I was only using half my strength and speed. The boy will not know what hit him next time."

"Good, he'll probably head home, so we should meet him there. He'll need the rest after you are done with him, I'm sure."

"That he will, deary. That he will."

* * *

Ranma took deep calming breaths as he made it home in record time. 'If I'm lucky, that will slow the Old Ghoul enough to get something to eat before round two.' He knew she would survive. He also knew that only an attack that powerful would allow him to get away from her even temporarily.

Taking a one last deep breath, Ranma walked into the Tendo household to hopefully get that snack.

"I'm home." Ranma called out as he entered.

"Welcome home, Ranma." Kasumi dutifully called back.

Walking into the kitchen, Ranma found the eldest Tendo hovering over the stove, sampling something from one pot with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Kasumi, could I get something to snack on?" Ranma asked.

Kasumi blinked, setting the sampling dish on the counter before turning to face Ranma. "Dinner will be in an hour, you wouldn't want to ruin your appetite."

"It's one of those days."

"I see, in that case I should have made more for the other guests. In the mean time you can have some of these." Kasumi replied as she efficiently assembled a small platter with crackers, cheese as well as two apples.

"Thanks, Kasumi." Ranma said with a large grin.

Quickly, Ranma attacked the food, trying to finish before the inevitable confrontation to come. He was finishing the last apple when he heard the front door open and close.

"Son-In-Law, we need to talk."

Ranma groaned. He had hoped that he would have at least another minute or two. Turning around, he found both Nabiki and Cologne staring at him intently.

"What is it, Old Ghoul? Didn't I whip you bad enough last time?"

"Indeed, that was an interesting technique that you used; one worthy of your brand of genius. It was not, however, nearly enough to stop me. You would be very wise to give up now before I have to bring out several powerful techniques myself."

Ranma grimaced. He knew if the old woman started going full out he wouldn't stand a chance, but the alternative… he couldn't face that either.

Knock, knock.

Ranma blinked. Everyone froze at the unexpected noise. People didn't knock. Anyone that shouldn't be here would make a new door. Those who should be here would just enter. Who could be at the door?

"You keep that thought in mind, Old Ghoul; I'll see who that is." Ranma commented arbitrarily as he left a glaring duo in the front living room.

Opening the front door, Ranma frowned. Before him stood a purple-red haired girl mysteriously cloaked in a green cape. Ranma felt as if her piercing eyes were looking directly into his soul.

"Ranma Saotome?"

"Yes?"

"My name is Chloe, I've come for you."

* * *

Author's end notes: Another chapter completed, as stated before, there is one final chance to get your vote in for which coupling out of the Noir trio Ranma will be with.

The vote for pairing stands at:

Ranma/Chloe: 6

Ranma/Kirika: 12

Ranma/Mireille: 4

In other news, Chaining of a Curse is undergoing revision to reflect several new ideas to align it more closely with canon. I'm also developing a new fic that should be an interesting twist once it comes out.

Thanks for reading,

brindani


	3. Exit Stage Left

Author's notes: Sorry about the delay, things have been a mess at work and several scenes in the story had to be changed in such a way that was a little awkward. A large thank you goes to my proof-reader, James Axelrad, for going over this story and pointing out things that didn't sound quite right.

Thanks also goes to Weebee for reviewing over this chapter giving me the opportunity to do a little spring…uh… winter cleaning. That just didn't sound right.

Disclamer: I do not own either Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 3: Exit Stage Left

Ranma blinked. 'Did she just say she came for me?' Ranma almost slapped himself in the head. 'Just what I need, another fiancée added to the mess.'

Not paying attention, Ranma automatically stepped back as the girl walked past him into the house.

"Uh," Ranma stammered watching her disappear around the corner. Closing the door, Ranma followed after the next strange girl to enter his life.

"Who is at the door, Ranma?" Kasumi asked from the kitchen.

"Um, Chloe." Ranma answered, not exactly sure what else to say.

"Oh, why don't you invite your friend in for tea?"

"…Okay. Would you like some tea?" Ranma asked, still following the girl as she walked into the front living room, examining various pictures as she progressed.

"Thank you, I would like that." Chloe said with a hint of a smile, ignoring the pointed glares coming from the other two female occupants of the room.

"And what are you here for?" Nabiki asked the girl as she took a seat at the table; upset that the girl was indirectly taking up the time she intended for the photo-shoot.

"I am here for Ranma," Chloe replied, remaining composed as the two frosty glares dropped another thirty degrees. Ranma shivered, glad that he was not on the receiving end for once.

"Another fiancée I suppose?" Nabiki asked with a small resigned sigh as she prepared for another drama filled episode of as the fiancée turns.

"Not at all, I've simply come to extend an invitation to Ranma. My Mistress has read many interesting things about the renowned hero of Nerima and would like to meet him in person."

Ranma blinked, of the many things he had been called during his stay with the Tendos, a renowned hero was never one of them. He kind of liked the sound of it though. Too bad Nabiki's response was not nearly as flattering.

"Hero, Ranma? Ha that's a laugh. He may help every now and again, but only when it suits him. He typically causes more damage then he prevents and almost everyone that he protects us from is only after him. What makes you think he is some sort of hero?"

Chloe simply shrugged her shoulders. "My Mistress has her reasons, some of which she wishes to discuss with him."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but the boy's time is spoken for. He has an obligation for a photo-shoot presently," Cologne informed Chloe.

"You are Cologne, correct?" Chloe asked, turning to face the ghoul on a stick.

"How do you know me?" Cologne was taken aback. She did not recognize this slip of a girl. How could she know of the Amazon elder? The fact that she did changed the dynamic of the situation.

"This is for you." Chloe pulled a manila envelope from her cloak and offered it to the Old Woman.

Hesitantly, Cologne took the letter and opened it. She scrutinized the content with puzzlement for a moment before her eyes widened. Her attention quickly shifted from it to Chloe to Ranma and back again.

Curious what had the Old Woman so upset; Nabiki circled around her and took a look. She blinked, admittedly it was very high quality paper. The problem was it was a blank aside for a small emblem on the bottom. The symbol portrayed two young maidens kneeling before each other with swords held before them.

Shaking her head, Nabiki missed the bare nod Chloe gave to Cologne.

Sighing, Cologne hopped away.

"Where are you going, Elder? You were…?"

"There has been a change of plans. Unfortunately I will not be able to assist you any longer.

Nabiki was floored. Cologne always stood behind her resolutions. Nabiki noticed that though Ranma looked surprised and greatly relieved, the new girl hadn't blinked an eye as if she expected the reaction. What could have caused Cologne to up and leave? What possible threat could this girl nearly the same age as herself pose to a three hundred year old mega-martial artist? No, this whole situation just stunk. Nabiki didn't like feeling left out of the loop..

Shaking herself, Nabiki ran after the Old Woman to remind her what was at stake if she left. When she reached the front door, she found that Cologne had already disappeared, just a small blip on the horizon.

Ranma was also startled by Cologne's abrupt departure. Who was this girl? How was she able to make Cologne leave with a simple letter? Or maybe the right question was: who did she serve that commanded such power?

"How did you do that?" Ranma asked still looking at the door the Ghoul had left through.

"Altena has a rapport with many people, including remote villages in China."

Returning to the front living room, Nabiki didn't say anything as her sharpened business senses tried to pick up exactly what had thrown all of her carefully lain plans off. For the moment she decided to sit back and gather information.

Ranma wasn't sure how to respond to Chloe especially with Nabiki eyeing both of them critically. He was saved from a long awkward silence as Kasumi walked in with a tray of tea and cookies.

"Good evening, you must be Ranma's little friend." Kasumi said as she lightly placed the tray in front of Chloe.

Chloe raised an eyebrow. 'Little friend?' No one had ever described her in such a fashion. 'I guess the background information was accurate, amazing.' Chloe thought to herself.

"Oh my, where did Cologne get off to? I made enough for everyone." Kasumi asked with concern, looking around to find her missing guest.

"She remembered a previous engagement she needed to attend to." Chloe mentioned taking a small sip of her tea.

"Oh, ok. I'll just go get Akane then." Kasumi replied heading upstairs to fetch her little sister.

Ranma felt the silence thicken in the air as he was still uncertain as to what was happening. He noticed Nabiki didn't appear concerned, but was rather carefully examining their unexpected guest. Deciding this was a good idea, Ranma decided to take a closer look at this mysterious girl.

There wasn't all that much about her really. She had reddish-purple hair, pulled back into a ponytail, which appeared to shift between red and purple depending on how the light hit it. Her eyes were purple and looked off into the distance as if watching something no one else could see. Her cloak was green and seemed to have some odd stitching in it.

Focusing closer, Ranma reached out with his other senses. She was strong in both mind and body; likely trained from the day of her birth. She was athletic and fast, her guard never wavering for a second even as she stared into the wall, her ki… Ranma almost gasped. The girl's ki, it was black. He was amazed that he had not seen it before. It seemed to ooze around her in dark ink black waves. It felt like a razor, slicing with an honed edge. Probing deeper Ranma looked for a break in the darkness. It felt hopeless, like finding a pin in an ominous sea of black waves. Searching ever deeper he found a single pinprick of light. He could almost feel it…

"This tea is very good." Ranma blinked, he was so engrossed in his introspective that he hadn't noticed Kasumi's return or … oh no. Akane's red aura flared around her; flickering in an inferno of anger. What could have set her off unless… He had been staring at Chloe…staring at… he was so dead.

"Ranma you IDIOT." Anake screamed as she whipped out her trusted shinai, ready to lay down a woman's righteous fury. Raising it high she threw all of her weight behind the blow, striking down.

Ranma seized up, closing his eyes, preparing for the inevitable headache to come. A barely audible thunk cut through the air before silence returned. Several seconds later, Ranma realized there was no familiar pain radiating throughout his head. Confused, he opened one eye.

His eyes fully opened finding a familiar wooden shinai split down the middle lying to either side of Akane. Chloe stood behind her, a knife to Akane's throat.

Nabiki stood frightened, her arm half outstretched to help her little sister even though she was unsure how.

"I've been tasked to escort Ranma to meet Altena unharmed. Any that try to harm him will suffer the consequences. Is that understood?"

Akane didn't even dare to nod as the knife caressed her neck, mere millimeters from the jugular below the skin. Giving the stubborn girl a few seconds to think of her predicament, the knife withdrew a few centimeters.

"Yes, I… I understand," Akane said relieved that her death was no longer imminent.

With a flash the knife disappeared into thin air to all except Ranma's trained senses.

"Good, now why don't we have some more of this excellent tea Kasumi has so kindly provided for us?" Chloe asked as she walked back to her place at the table, leaving a very shaken Akane to slump to the ground.

Ranma wasn't sure whether he should be mad at the girl that had just threatened someone he looked after or be thanking her for preventing the fifth such strike that day and most likely the last as long as Chloe stayed judging by how Akane was still shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.

Deciding to follow the middle path, Ranma let the situation go for the moment. Besides it wouldn't help anyone to antagonize the girl. She wasn't as strong or as fast as he was, but her intent felt far more cutting. That said Ranma tried to relax and sipped on what he had to admit was some very good tea laced with honey.

"So how are we going to meet this Altena?"

"The airplane can leave at your convenience."

"Airplane?" Ranma spluttered, spitting out the tea he had been drinking. "Where exactly does she want to meet me?" Ranma asked. Anyone that ever wanted to meet him always came to him. It almost seemed to be some sort of rule; then another problem came to him. "I don't have money for a plane ticket."

"Don't worry, everything has been arranged." Chloe said, unconcernedly sipping her tea.

"She's paying? She must really want to see you, Saotome, if she's willing to pay for a plane ticket. Still, that doesn't excuse the fact that you have prior obligations to meet," Nabiki mentioned giving Ranma a hard glare. Realizing her business sense had overridden her self-preservation, Nabiki gave a tentative look Chloe's way for any reaction. Said girl didn't comment, her attention to a rather delectable chocolate chip cookie.

'It would definitely be nice to get away from here for awhile.' Ranma thought, unconsciously cringing back from the deadly look he thought was still directed at him. 'If it's by plane, as long as Chloe doesn't give any contact information then Nabiki won't be able to hound me. That means I get to avoid Nabiki and, as a bonus, a vacation from all the insanity around this place. I'm not seeing a problem here.' Ranma smiled at that thought. No dodging at every shadow and light breeze.

"I'll do…" Ranma abruptly stopped as he noticed his Father on the stairway, just coming down.

"Boy, who is this person?" Genma asked as he caught sight of someone unfamiliar at the table. He was curious as he didn't recognize her from their long training journey.

"Someone named Chloe. She was sent by an Altena who wants to talk to me."

"Altena…" Genma's face turned ash white. Taking a closer look at the girl he found her staring straight into his eyes over teacup. "I never thought..." Chloe stood up from the table, looking intently at Genma. "I understand. Boy, it looks like you may get your wish."

"Wish? What wish Pops? Where are you going?" Ranma asked as he watched Genma sedately walk towards the front door.

"To your Mother's house; it is long past time we had a talk." Genma paused in the doorway, not turning to face Ranma. "Remember, boy, in the end you are the master of your destiny. Take care of yourself." With that Genma ran off down the street.

Now Ranma was very confused. A mysterious girl shows up out of the blue, forcibly calms Akane, manages to get rid of Cologne with a letter and Pops with a glance. What was happening here? There was only one way to find out.

"What the hell was that all about?" Ranma asked as he turned back to a reseated Chloe.

"Let's just says we know a mutual acquaintance."

"This Altena person?" Ranma asked, remembering the name that left his Father pale.

"Yes, she will answer your questions once we arrive."

"Why can't you tell me?"

For a long moment Chloe looked into Ranma's troubled eyes before speaking.

"I do not know everything myself," Chloe finally replied before sitting back down to nurse her tea.

"Okay, so when can we go?" asked Ranma, he realized that something was going on, but also understood that the only person with all the answers stood at the end of this trip.

"Saotome!" Nabiki exclaimed, forgetting what the foreign girl had done in a bid to stop her money horse from bolting.

"We can leave now if you like." Chloe said, setting down her tea to give Ranma her full attention.

"What will I need to take with me?" Ranma asked, already standing in preparation.

"Everything you need will be provided."

"Are you sure? I can get my pack real quick," Ranma answered, gesturing to the stairway behind him.

"Altena has arranged everything for your stay," Chloe affirmed.

"You can not leave until you have paid your debt to me!" Nabiki demanded in a slight panic, blocking Ranma's way to the exit.

Nabiki froze when she felt a light tapping on her shoulder. She was reminded all too quickly of the threats the mysterious girl had made at knife point. Tentatively she turned to face Chloe, who stood behind her with an envelope very similar to Cologne's.

"This is for you. A parting gift so to speak." Chloe mentioned lightly placing it in Nabiki's limp grip.

Ranma watched as Nabiki hesitantly opened the letter, scanning through it, her eyes widened. Without another word, Nabiki turned around and limply walked upstairs.

"Okay." Ranma mumbled as he watched her nervelessly leave like all the others.

Before exiting the door, Chloe turned to face the entrance to the kitchen. "Thank you for the wonderful tea and cookies."

"You're welcome," Kasumi said graciously as she popped her head out from her domain. "Akane, do you need a blanket; you appear to be shivering," Kasumi asked as she noticed her little sister still shaking at the table.

* * *

Several blocks away from the Tendo residence found the two walking along the sidewalk at a sedate pace, Chloe leading the way.

Ranma appeared antsy as his gaze shifted from various alleys and rooftops. 'This just isn't right. There should be a…'

"RANMA! How dare you make Shampoo cry."

'Ah, I was wondering when someone was going to show up.'

Ranma stopped, he hadn't expected a warning, but it suited him just fine. Looking on top of the roof of the building across the street, he found the aggressor. Of course, Mousse wasn't exactly trying to hide his presence. He practically glowed in bright shades of red and green, shaking with fury.

Ranma almost smiled, if he was lucky and Nabiki didn't clue off his other rivals/fiancées, this may be the last fight for awhile. This trip was turning out to be a very good thing. He not only got away from Nabiki, but all the other nut-jobs that made their home here.

"What are you talking about, Mouse? I haven't done anything to Shampoo."

"Nice try, Saotome, but I saw it with my own eyes."

"Are you sure? Did you have your glasses on at the time?"

"Shut-up! I had my glasses on. Cologne came home and talked to her. Shampoo went running out of the kitchen crying moments later. Cologne was at your house, Saotome. Something you did upset her. I'll rip the answer from your carcass myself," Mousse finished, pulling two full broad swords from his sleeves.

Ranma suddenly found Chloe standing in front of him, two throwing knives pulled out.

Ranma became worried. Mousse was an idiot, but he didn't deserve to die. If Ranma read Chloe right, he might if he misjudged the situation.

"I'll take care of this."

Chloe looked Ranma in the eye, critically evaluating him before backing away. "If you insist, but if you get hurt, I will step in," Chloe said

"Are you letting an outsider girl do your fighting now, Saotome? Have you lost your nerve? It doesn't matter; I'll take revenge on you myself." Mousse said, jumping down, his twin blades pulled back, the sun framing his descent like an angel of death or maybe closer to a blind angel of death.

SMACK.

Ranma slapped himself in the head. "Mouse, put your glasses on before you jump off a building. You might be able to tell where the ground is."

Pulling himself from the ground, Mousse reached into his robes and extracted a thick pair of glasses which he put on.

Without further word, Mousse jumped to the attack again. He swung his twin swords out, trying to catch Ranma between the ultra sharp edges as they came together. Ranma, being Ranma, jumped over the flashing blades, stepping off the blind duck's head, landing lightly behind his opponent.

"Fight fair, Saotome!" Mousse screamed as he violently turned to face his arch nemesis.

"Fair? This coming from the guy that attacked me from behind, teamed up with others against me and tried to make my life an over all living hell? You think that is fair?"

"Shut-up, all that matters is Shampoo." Mousse screamed, lunging at Ranma again, going for a wide sweep with one sword as the other came in from above, cutting off an overhead escape. It didn't matter much to Ranma. He ducked and rolled in-between Mouse's legs.

"Come on Mousse, I might not see you for awhile and you still aren't proving any kind of challenge at all."

"For devastating Shampoo, I must have my revenge! No matter the cost to my pride," Mousse raged; raising his arms up, Mousse allowed his swords to drop, disappearing back into his sleeves. Lowering his arms, Mousse reached deep into his reserves, dramatically pulling out… a training potty?

"What are you doing with that thing again? You haven't used it since we first met," Ranma noted with an eyebrow raised incredulously.

"Yes, I accidentally allowed you to glimpse my greatest weapon once, but you never realized its significance. I may be a master of hidden weapons, but to become my Master's apprentice I was forced to first master my greatest shame. I did so, but swore not to ever use it again unless absolutely necessary. If you are going to flee, then to defend Shampoo's honor, I will use my sealed weapon."

Ranma looked incredulously at Mousse. He had seen a lot of different weapons in his life ranging from giant paintbrushes to huge spatulas, but he had to admit he never thought anyone would use such a…a… ridiculous item as a weapon in his life. The only time anything came close was…

Ranma's introspective was cut short as he dodged a swing that nearly took his head off.

'What the hell? His speed just went insane!' Ranma thought as he desperately dodged Mousse's blurred form.

Left, right, right, left, Ranma barely managed to stay ahead of the weapon, trusting his instincts to weave his way through the near invisible onslaught.

THUD Ranma's back hit the wall behind him allowing a strike to his side. Clutching his rapidly bruising chest, Ranma jumped back, a hiss escaping his clenched teeth.

To his further surprise, Ranma's leap carried him, now her, through a cascade of water from the apartments above.

"You finally see what you truly are before my legendary attack, don't you Saotome? Want some more? There is plenty where that came from." Mousse took up an absurd looking stance with his weapon of choice held in one hand while balancing on one foot. This last only a moment before he rushed in again.

Ranma's eyes locked on the approaching target, tracing each step he took. Mouse's attack struck out, but something was different, Ranma could track its path easily as it came around to strike her stomach. Time jerked forward as Ranma's lithe female frame shot around each strike effortlessly. Loud clanks echoed across the street before the two separated again.

Ranma turned to face a motionless Mousse.

"What are you going to say now, Mousse?"

"I… will…defeat…" The training potty cracked in half followed shortly by Mousse slumping to the ground.

"Damn idiot, never knew when to quit." Ranma muttered to herself as she stared angrily at the dumb duck.

That is until she found a canister hovering before her. Blinking, Ranma traced the hand attached to it back to Chloe, her eyes watching Ranma with an intense considering look.

"Altena mentioned something like this might happen and that you may want some warm water before we continue on our trip."

"Um, thanks." Ranma said, taking the canister and upending it over her head, changing back into a guy.

* * *

Past that encounter, the trip was rather mundane. Ranma was almost disappointed that Ryoga or Kuno didn't make an appearance before they reached the Tokyo airport.

At the front entrance, they were met by a large man in a black suit and tie, his sun glasses reflected the world around him, hiding the eyes hidden beneath. The man merely nodded before walking off. Chloe followed after the man after returning his nod. Ranma trailed after her. Distracted by all the large airplanes around and a little sickened by the noxious fumes that seemed to permieat the area, he was a little surprised when he abruptly stopped on the strip. Taking a quick step back, Ranma noticed a comparatively small private jet sitting just ahead.

It was s sleek small jet with twin engines and a small stairway leading to the entrance. Ranma had never seen such a plane before. Actually, aside from those he saw on their tour through the airport, Ranma had never seen any kind of plane up close. During his training trip, if they ever had to get anywhere they walked. For heaven sakes, his father had them swim to China.

Walking across the strip, the three came to what Ranma could only describe as a stunning sight standing in front of the airplane. It was a woman with blond wavy hair that cascaded down her back, an hourglass figure, and a bust straining her professional uniform that would have left Shampoo in tears of jealousy. Even Ranma was hard pressed not to stare at the woman.

"Good day, Mistress Chloe, Master Saotome. My name is Veronica and I welcome you aboard our humble Aerospace G-V Gulfstream non-stop flight to Spain." The woman said after a formal bow to both of the people approaching her. Keeping his eyes forward, Ranma continued up the stairs, but if he didn't know any better, he could have sworn he felt her gaze as he past her.

Stepping on-board, Ranma's eyes widened as he took in the interior of the plane. Where there should have been row upon row of cramped seats with no leg room he found two large lavender overstuffed couches facing one another. Each looked very comfortable. In-between the two was an indentation on the floor that looked like an extractable table. Beyond was a clearly marked bathroom with a green unoccupied sign on the front.

Overall he had seen houses that looked less comfortable. He didn't understand why someone would need or even want all of this on a plane, but who was he to complain?

Ranma nearly jumped as he felt a hand lightly tap his shoulder. Turning, he came face to face with the stunning blond smiling up at him.

"Please, have a seat, Master Saotome. We will be leaving shortly."

A little disconcerted by both the proximity and they way she addressed him, Ranma walked forward to sit across from Chloe as she was buckling in. Taking his cue from her, Ranma buckled his own seatbelt. He didn't know what a seatbelt would do to protect him if the plane went down, but decided to humor his host.

* * *

Ranma wiped his brow as he exited the plane. He had had no idea of exactly how boring a plane trip could be. Sure, takeoff was interesting; being pressed back into his seat. Watching the cars turn into ants scurrying around before disappearing all together. After the land was completely obscured, the clouds were interesting to see up close with a window separating him from them.

Fifteen minutes later he was bored stiff. There was nothing to do in a confined space for twelve and a half hours. Sure it was neat that the rest room had a shower, but what else was there? At least in school he could go outside and stretch his legs during lunch even though it meant dealing with the fiancée brigade half the time.

Ranma didn't know how Chloe did it, but she just sat on her couch with her eyes closed. If he didn't know better, he would think she was sleeping. At least if she hadn't instantly awakened whenever the stewardess brought refreshments.

Of course the _very_ attentive stewardess made things uncomfortable herself. If he even looked up she would be there in moments, bending low to ask him if there was anything that she could do for him. By the end of the trip he became hesitant to look around as Veronica obviously felt that the cabin was too hot and had loosened a couple of buttons.

Stepping lightly off the final step, Ranma did a few basic stretches, very happy to finally be off the airborne prison. He wasn't given much time as Chloe immediately made her way out of the airport. Ranma, not wanting to be lost in another country where he didn't know the language, followed after quickly.

"So where are we going now?" Ranma asked he caught up to her onto the sidewalk outside of the airport.

"We will rest in a hotel for the night and start early tomorrow morning."

"Why not go there now?"

"Altena wishes you to be well rested before your meeting. As I'm sure you are feeling, a twelve and a half hour flight is rather exhausting."

"That's true," Ranma nodded along with Chloe's reasoning. "So where is the hotel?"

"There." Chloe indicated by pointing at the twelve story five star hotel across the street.

"Wow." Ranma didn't know what else to say. This was the first time anyone had ever gone out of their way to make Ranma feel comfortable. He didn't know who this Altena was, but apparently she knew how to take care of a guest. Ranma still wondered why this person wanted to see him so badly to arrange for such a luxurious welcoming amongst everything else.

Stepping into the hotel, Ranma stood back as Chloe talked to the people at the front desk in a language he did not recognize. He knew English, a little Mandarin, and of course Japanese, but this sounded like none of these. Given the location he assumed it was Spanish.

When she returned, she handed him a card with large letters depicting 'room 203'.

"It's getting late. You should get your rest." Chloe mentioned as she headed towards the elevator.

"Wait! Which room are you in?" Ranma asked the rapidly departing Chloe.

"506, I'll pick you up at 7:00. Don't sleep in." Chloe mentioned, shooting Ranma an intense look just before the elevator closed.

Bemused Ranma left to find his room.

* * *

Later that night Ranma thought he heard someone crying. Drowsily looking around, he found Shampoo hunched over in the doorway.

"Shampoo? What are you doing here?" Ranma asked the crouched girl.

The girl stopped crying suddenly before turning as if noticing he was there for the first time.

Her look changed subtly from surprise to something else. A look Ranma was all too familiar with. This one seemed even hungrier than Shampoo usually gave.

The girl sashayed her way into his room seductively.

"Oh hunkster, are you awake?"

'Wait that wasn't Shampoo's voice,' Ranma shook his head. The image of Shampoo blured away, morphing into the gorgeous outline of the stewardess from the airplane.

Realizing he had been asleep with his eyes open, Ranma's attention rapidly drew towards the unexpected arrival.

"What are you doing here?"

The stewardess gave a saucy grin as she slowly unbuttoned her blouse. "I've come for some fun."

"What kind of fun?" Ranma didn't like the way this was shaping up. He had too much experience with overtly amorous girls. It always ended up as bad news.

"Oh, the really fun type, stud-muffin." She murmured in a silk laced purr, tugging her blouse off.

"No."

Startled, the stewardess stopped, staring at Ranma incredulously before another smile creped its way back. "Playing hard to get? I can do that for you, my little mouse." She said as she continued to remove her blouse.

"No, I'm serious. Things like this always lead to trouble."

"If you're talking about pregnancy, I have plenty of protection." She mentioned revealing several colors of said protection.

"Things like this end up in an arranged marriage or a woman that wants to kill me."

"It's only a one night stand, manly man. You won't ever see me again. No commitment, no worries, just a whole lot of fun" She huskily whispered, her right hand lightly caressing her stomach, her left teasingly tugging at her bra as she softly moaned to herself.

"I said no." Ranma said though even he felt the strong desire from below rising in rapt attention. She was ravishing even his high standards.

"Humph, you're missing out." Victoria said angrily, sharply pulling her blouse back up and moving to the door.

"Maybe, but more then likely, I'm saving myself a lot of trouble."

Shrugging, the stewardess finished redressing herself before moving out the door.

Sighing with relief, Ranma decided a VERY cold bath was in order before getting back to sleep. He would have to make it quick as he had a feeling tomorrow would be a long and tiring day.

* * *

Stepping outside of Ranma's apartment, the stewardess closed the door and almost squeaked when she turned to find Chloe standing before her. Her heavy breathing slowed as the girl before her only lifted a brow. Regaining control, Veronica nodded her head, accepting the proffered packet full of bills before rushing down the hall.

Chloe watched her go, a small smile forming on her lips as she watched the supermodel playing stewardess leave through the elevator.

"Altena will be pleased; he has passed the first test." She then left, heading back to her apartment to turn in for the night.

* * *

Post author's notes: The Aerospace G-V Gulfstream can actually make the hop from Japan to Spain as with reserves it has a 12,045 Km flight range and the distance between the two countries is just over 10,000 Km. Overall a neat little plane.

The vote for the pairing stands at:

Ranma/Chloe: 17

Ranma/Kirika: 17

Ranma/Mireille: 5

As you can see we have a tie between Chloe and Kirika. I was rather surprised by this. I could posse as the final vote, but that really defeats the purpose of the vote to begin with. That said we'll have to put it to sudden death. Everyone can revote and in two days I'll tally them all. This is a tie-breaker so the vote is restricted to Ranma/Chloe and Ranma/Kirika.

I've received many responses regarding certain aspects of the story thus far and have decided to address them as well as several others that I can see coming.

Question: Nabiki's a teenager, she shouldn't have anywhere near the connections necessary to arrange for diplomatic immunity.

Answer: You're absolutely correct, she doesn't have such connections. Well, she didn't until recently.

Question: Nabiki providing for the entire family is both impossible and overdone in fanfiction.

Answer: I've seen many discussions about this and it looks like it could be viewed either way though I do agree that it is unlikely that she does provide for her family in such a manner. The reason behind it in this story is that I don't like one dimensional main characters. Nabiki thus far has been the proverbial female dog and this idea is the only thing close enough to give a reason behind it.

Question: Cologne would never be so afraid of Chloe that she would leave without a fight.

Answer: Cologne isn't afraid of Chloe. She is afraid of what is behind her. If she crosses the Soldats what is to stop them from having a simulation bomb drop go wrong in the middle of the jungle and accidentally wipe out a backwater village? Besides, the insignia marked Ranma as being in the middle of the business of Noir which Cologne's mind could easily extract a few scenarios as she has lived during the time when other Noirs where active.

Question: What is Mouses' shame that he would be forced to master a training potty?

Answer: I'll leave that up to your imagination.

Question: Why is Akane using a shinai instead of a mallet?

Answer: My experience is based primarily on the Anime where Akane actually uses a shinai amongst other blunt objects to hit Ranma a lot more then she ever did a mallet.

Question: What is a shinai?

Answer: It is a wodden sword, thank you for clarification jerrytai46 and Calamity-Queen of Cordi.

Thanks for reading,

brindani


	4. First Contact

Author's notes: We have a winner, Kirika came in with 8 and Chloe with a 17. I'm rather surprised by the results as Kirika appeared to be the early favorite. Thank you to everyone who voted. The story would have been submitted 4/27/2006, but the website was having some problems with logging in. Thanks goes out to James Axelrad for checking over the story.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 4: First contact

Knock Knock.

Ranma's eyes blearily cracked open as the annoying noise reverberated throughout the room.

Knock Knock.

Ranma grumbled incoherently, unconsciously trying to make the racket disturbing his peaceful sleep, go away.

'The bed is so soft and comfy and Akane hasn't thrown a bucket of cold water yet. Wait… Akane doesn't knock on the door. I don't sleep in a bed.' These two thoughts slowly coursed their way through his mind. Still, Ranma boot version 1.01 refused to launch without the proper access codes; these fundamental codes included the likes of cold water, being thrown through air, the smell of breakfast, or a life threatening event. Anything else had been relegated to 'negligent attention needed' status. This new unusual attempt to activate was taking a long time to process.

"Ranma, it is time to leave," a quite, serious voice drifted through the door.

'That isn't Akane's voice.' The bypass auto-activation protocol went online pertaining to unusual circumstances.

Ranma's eyes opened fully to an unfamiliar ceiling quickly snapping shut as the light flooding through the window blinded him. "Where am I?" Ranma moaned, groggily looking around.

As if in reply, the boot-up sequence completed, loading Ranma's memory of the previous day. 'Wow, that wasn't a dream. That means I'm not in Nerima any more.' Ranma thought to himself. It was a little odd to no longer be in a familiar environment, no matter how hectic it might have been. He was now halfway across the globe to meet an unknown, but powerful person. In a way it was a little frightening and yet exhilarating. It was almost like being back on the road except with the extra bonus of no pops.

Lazily shifting his head Ranmas eyes came in contact with the clock next to the bed causing them to open suddenly. It was 7:05. Chloe wanted him ready before 7:00. 'Oh shoot!' Ranma jumped out of bed, disappearing in a flurry of motion as he made fast preparations for the day. He stopped cold when he exited the shower and noticed a clean pair of sky blue Chinese cloths identical to the red ones that he wore yesterday. He reached down and took hold of them. The fabric felt extraordinarily soft to the touch, making his old ones feel rough by comparison. Ranma shrugged his shoulders before realizing he was still running late, sending him scrambling into the fine silk clothing.

At exactly 7:08, Ranma opened the door to a cool faced Chloe. Ranma felt the aggravation radiating from her hidden face.

"You are late."

"Sorry, I must have been more tired then I expected."

"Follow me; we'll have to have breakfast in the car."

"I'm only eight minutes late."

Chloe didn't reply, simply turning away and walking to the elevator. She sharply turned to stare at Ranma as he boarded alongside her.

Stepping out on the ground floor, they were met by an elderly gentleman bowing before them. When he returned to his full height, he held out a hand.

"Good morning, Mistress Chloe, Master Ranma." He greeted as Chloe handed him her keycard. Ranma started to panic, searching his pockets realizing that he didn't have the card key on him. Nervously he tugged at his pigtail while Chloe looked back at him expectantly. "That is quite alright Master Ranma, I'll have someone fetch the card key from your room later on." The man said, understanding the reason behind Ranma's nervousness.

"Thanks," Ranma said as he ran to catch up to an already retreating Chloe.

Ranma found himself gawking as he exited hotel. Sitting beside the curb was a sleek black stretch limo. A person wearing a chuffer's uniform holding the door open as Chloe climbed in.

Once again, Ranma was reminded that this Altena was pulling out all the stops to meet with him. 'Why?' he wondered. 'I'm the best martial artist there is, but still this is going a little far even to meet with me.' Ranma thought as he entered the car, the chuffer closing the door behind him.

Ranma stared at the lush leather interior, wooden side plating and a large widescreen TV embedded in the wall across from him. On the far side was a small cabinet that, when he opened, contained various beverages, most of which looked alcoholic. Ranma jumped slightly when he heard a small cough from behind him. Turning around, he noticed Chloe staring at him with intense eyes. Tracing where she kept glancing, he found the seatbelt in the chair he was kneeling across. Hurriedly he sat down and secured his seatbelt before continuing to look around him.

His eyes quickly latched onto the most interesting items sitting innocently on the cabinet of the far side; sandwiches. His stomach began to gurgle sending a clear message that missing dinner under the circumstances was understandable, but missing breakfast would be dealt with extreme prejudice.

Turning to Chloe, he received a brief nod. It was all the invitation Ranma needed before he tore into the sandwiches.

His hand extracted one after another to satisfy the one master he could not easily deny; his stomach. Reaching for the fifth, Ranma's hand hesitated, hovering above the tender morsel. He looked down to the four wrappers on his lap and back to the four remaining. He glanced at Chloe; her eyes closed, appearing to be asleep.

He had not seen her eat anything and there was nothing on her side of the car. Indecisively, Ranma continued to look between the inviting food and what must be his hungry host. It was a sacrifice that his stomach was complaining very loudly about, but he couldn't just let her miss breakfast because of him.

Reluctantly, Ranma gathered the rest of the sandwiches; lightly placing them next to Chloe, who opened her eyes as they settled beside her. Her gaze connected with Ranma's before shifting to the sandwiches. Her eyes gradually lost the hard edge they had carried all morning. Slowly, Chloe unwrapped one of the sandwiches and started to nibble on it. Well it was agonizing torture from Ranma's point of view.

To distract himself, Ranma inspected the interior or the vehicle. Though lugubrious, there was not much to truly see and he became quickly acclimated to the novelty of the limousine. Ranma's attention became enraptured with the sights streaking by outside. He could see a lot of tall old buildings. It made for an interesting contrast with all of the new cars framing the view. Just when he grew accustom to the sights of the city, they exited into the country with new appealing sights to see.

"I'm sorry."

"About what?" Ranma asked as his rapt attention diverted from the beautiful country side, back to Chloe.

"You'll have to wear this," Chloe gestured to a blindfold dangling in her hand.

"But," Ranma said pointing out to all the new sights he would miss.

"You will be able to sightsee later."

It had been a long time since he traveled to a foreign country since China and he didn't want to miss it. Then again, she said he would be able to see the landscape later.

Grudgingly, Ranma took the blindfold from Chloe, wrapping it around his forehead, blocking the alluring scenery flashing by the window from view. Ranma sat back and waited, only to wait some more. It almost felt like the airplane all over again. This time, however, he wasn't even able to look outside to watch the clouds drift by. The only thing he could do was feel the smooth road below him.

As things were boring, Ranma decided to follow one of his school's main principles; make everything into training. Ranma began to focus his senses, trying to expand them out to feel his surroundings. As they stretched, he felt himself bombarded with sensations from all directions. A veritable blur of greens and browns indistinguishable from one another overloaded his senses. Forcing his concentration down, he focused on a small part of the immense tapestry assaulting him, blocking everything else out. He could now almost distinguish parts from the barrage of colors.

Ranma frowned, it was still too much. He would have to focus on a smaller section. Turning his scan, he focused solely on the car. Some of the information started to make some sense. He could see the driver as a cool blue. Everything else appeared to be a drab gray. The picture was so crisp and clear it could almost double for a second sight. Gently he used more power, further defining the layout of the limo.

Ranma was surprised when his attention focused on Chloe. As he remembered from his previous scan, her aura was a shifting midnight black. What he was surprised to find was that it was not random. It almost felt like it sensed his probes and was trying to hide her from him. Testing, he lightly probed one direction after another to see the result. He was rewarded with a constant shift to best camouflage itself. He was surprised he had not sensed it last time.

"Please stop," came a soft voice from in front of him.

"What?" Ranma asked startled by the unexpected sound.

"You are doing something, please stop."

"Ok," Ranma replied, disappointed he could not explore what other applications for this new technique. Resigning himself, the pigtailed youth centered, trying to expand his ki reserves.

Minutes sledged past slowly rolling into hours. The only change Ranma felt was the gradual shift from smooth to rickety and finally into a rocky road. Eventually the sensation ended as the car creped to a stop.

Ranma heard the door swing open. Pulling himself out of his trance, he slid out, standing patently as he heard the car move back the way they had come. Soon after the sound faded into the background, he felt Chloe's presence approach him from behind, lifting the blindfold from his eyes. Light flooded his vision as it was removed. As his sight cleared he had to suppress a deep intake of breath. They were standing on the edge of a small hill. Before him lay a barren landscape; it only served to heighten the effect of a vast cluster of grape vines surrounding a large broken down building. It almost appeared to be a jewel in the middle of the landscape. Off to the side, he could make out a large building that looked similar to a coliseum in pictures he had seen once.

"Welcome to the manor," Chloe murmured before walking down one of the many isles leading through the grape vines. Ranma walked after her, half mesmerized by everything around him. The air itself was fresh and fragrant, filled with the intoxicating scents of grapes hanging heavily on the breeze. They were such a delicacy for him; he had only had a chance to sample them once or twice in his life. To be surrounded by so many was astounding.

It didn't take long with their quick pace to reach the manor proper. Waiting just in front of the main entrance stood a woman with long brown hair pulled behind her in a very nice braid. Chloe smiled before running from Ranma straight into the woman's open arms.

"My dear Chloe, how I have missed you." Ranma knew he was dense sometimes, but even he felt like he was intruding on a special moment between the two. After several minutes the older woman's eyes opened to look at Ranma over Chloe's shoulder. "I see you were successful in your mission." The woman said, allowing a final squeeze before letting go. She stood straight, staring into Ranma's eyes with an intense yet somehow gentle and caring look before bowing low. "My name is Altena; welcome, to my humble home, Ranma." She greeted in flawless Japanese.

Ranma was struck once again. It was a standard greeting by Japanese standards, but not one accustomed to receiving. Awkwardly, he bowed back to his host.

"Um… thanks for having me."

"Come, you must be tired after your long journey. Please, make yourself at home," she said, turning to walk back towards the building with a smiling Chloe beside her.

Ranma blinked several times before following after the two. They walked up the stone steps and into the manor itself. Before entering, Ranma took one last look at the broken and dilapidated large house. For some reason he did not feel disappointed even after the lavish transportation; something about this place was special. He could feel it.

Walking through several hallways, Ranma started to feel like he was in a maze; they continually turned from one passageway to the next without end. Eventually they turned into a barren room containing an old warn work table and a window with a good view of the vineyard.

Altena turned as she entered, briefly glancing at Chloe. The girl nodded happily before leaving through the door they had just entered. Once the young girl left the room, Altena carefully studied Ranma with those kind eyes. Ranma felt compelled to fall into those eyes and accept the embrace she would surly offer. He forcefully restrained himself. A man simply did not do things like that; he was a man amongst men.

"I'm glad you could come, Ranma. I know your life is very busy. You must have many questions for me. In fact I can guess what the first must be." She paused briefly giving Ranma the chance to reply before continuing. "Why have I asked you here all the way from Japan?" Altena stopped, again waiting for Ranma's reaction which eventually he gave in the form of a small nod in the affirmative. "Truly, I've asked you here for many reasons. The first was to see you with my own eyes." Ranma blinked.

"I have known about you for a long time, Ranma. Your mother and I were once acquaintances. When you were born, I was interested in hearing the tales of how you grew up on the road. Later, I heard many amazing and fantastic stories of your accomplishments in Nerima; shooting energy from your hand, facing enemies that were equaled in power only by their unusual techniques. In each case, you handled it with your strength of character and determination.

During all that time I have wanted to meet with you in person."

Ranma felt his chest puff out as he recalled many of those outlandish escapades and how he always did come out on top. After a few seconds, his brows lowered; his face becoming serious once more.

"You know my mother? Why hasn't she mentioned you?" Ranma asked curiously.

"It was unfortunately, but we had our differences in the past."

"That was not the only reason you wanted to see me, was it?" Ranma asked, knowing that this person had gone to a lot of trouble to see him. He sensed she was the type to do something for more then one reason.

Altena smile widened. "You are correct, Ranma. There are other things that I wanted to discuss with you. Please, have a seat." Altena offered, gesturing to the chair just behind her.

Reluctantly, Ranma sat down; it wouldn't do to upset his host, especially when he had no clue as to where he was.

Altena walked around and took a seat herself, facing Ranma. Between them lay a thick envelope. Picking up the envelope, Altena carefully extracted the content, placing it before her. Ranma found himself facing what appeared to be a large collection of pictures.

"I imagine you have seen something similar to these in the news recently." Altena stated placing the top picture in front of Ranma.

Ranma took in a heavy breath as he looked at the scene displayed before him.

In the picture, a woman crouched protectively over her daughter. Both watched helplessly as a solder brutally stomped on a bruised and battered man Ranma could only assume was the father. Another solder was hammering something into the door. Looking closer, Ranma could make out the English.

_Evicted in the name of our glorious leader_.

Ranma forced his eyes to the next picture placed before him. It featured twenty people lined up in front of a firing squad, a pit behind them filled with shapes Ranma's eyes refused to identify. In the background was a crowd of others that looked to be quivering in fear lined up for blocks.

The next a child of ten in a battered dirty dress on her knees, tears streaming down her face as she reached a hand through bars of a prison cell, a solder with a whip raised his hand back for another lashing.

Pictures came one after the next, each more horrific then the last. How could such horrible acts be possible? Were these people even human? Humans couldn't do anything so appalling.

Finally Ranma brought his eyes back up to meet Altena's, fighting back tears; he didn't know if they were of outrage, disgust, sadness or some twisted combination of all three. 'Men do not cry no matter what the reason.' He repeated over and over in his mind. "Why did you show me these?"

"In the country were they were taken, a civil war has erupted and violent acts have become common place. Their leader, Jamal Hecetate, has refused to listen to both the United Nations and our own private requests to stop the suffering."

Altena removed another pictures from the top of the stack, placing it before Ranma. Ranma took the picture and frowned, it was of a tall man, roughly 6 foot 4 with black hair combed in a precise split, a well groomed goatee, and eyes a harsh coal black. Ranma took an instant dislike to him. Physically he looked respectable, but those eyes screamed sadist; as if they truly enjoyed watching the suffering their owner inflicted.

"So you want me to help persuade this guy to stop the violence?"

"Yes, this situation will take a person of your exceptional skills to handle. Even with the darkness that shrouds the country there is a glimmer of light. This is April Towarto," Altena mentioned, pulling another photo of an attractive woman in her late twenties with hair a light shade of brown in a pony-tail pulled across her shoulder. She wore a professional business suit with a kind smile on her face "She led the country before Jamal organized a militaristic and bloody coup. Fortunately, we were able to pull her out before she was executed. She is now hiding in another country. She and I have an understanding, once Jamal has retired from power, his supporters will quickly fall and she will rush our offered aid to the suffering civilian populous. Do you understand, Ranma?" Altena took a moment to study the young man before her as he looked through the photos that she had laid before him. "You would of course receive payment and training for the mission if you accept."

"Hmmm," Ranma mumbled not really hearing what she said.

Altena sat quietly, allowing Ranma to study the photo that remained loosely in his hand; a firing squad ready to shoot innocent civilians. He noticed one young girl in the background no older then twelve. She didn't have her eyes closed at all. She looked on at the firing squad with resignation. Someone so young had already realized that these people were there to kill her. This woman, Altena, was giving him the chance to help these people, to put a stop to the death and suffering.

His father's parting words seemed to echo in his mind; he would get his wish. He now understood, he would be able to help people. Not just one or two, but thousands if not hundreds of thousands. He didn't know how this woman would allow him to, but if she could, he would follow her.

"If that is the case, I'll have to go down there and teach this guy the error of his ways." Ranma said, slamming the pictures down on the table, looking up to Altena who serenely smiled back.

"I was hoping you would help us. Please, follow me." Altena said standing to make her way out of the room. Ranma stood as well, following the woman out the door and back through the hallways of the manor. Once Ranma caught up to Altena she began to speak. "By its very nature, stealth will be a necessity for this mission. Even with your extraordinary abilities, going against an entire army would be suicidal at best."

Ranma nodded his head as they walked along. "That makes sense," he agreed.

"Yes, Chloe has mentioned that when you are a girl your speed is incredibly fast."

"How did you hear about that? Chloe hasn't said anything since we arrived."

"She wrote me a letter last night. I received it just before you arrived. In any case, it would be best if you used your female form to do this."

Ranma stopped in his tracks. "Do this in my girl form! What do you mean? I can handle this as a guy no problem."

Altena stopped several feet in front of Ranma and turned around to face him. "Ranma, have you ever dealt with guns before?"

"Well, of course not. Guns are for those too weak to fight their own battles. No one in Nerima is that weak." Ranma replied with a hint of disgust in his voice.

"Yes, guns are often used by the weak to make themselves feel strong, but they are only a tool; a very dangerous tool that can rob a person of their life with just a single miscalculation. A single moment of inattention can make the difference between life and death. Do you understand, Ranma?"

Altena's eyes seemed to harden as she stared directly into Ranma's, searching for an answer. Ranma knew that guns were dangerous, but still, he was the best.

"Yes Ranma even the best can fall prey to them. Please follow me," Altena said as she changed directions.

Ranma blinked, 'How did she know what I was thinking?' he thought before trailing after the woman once more. It didn't take long before they made their way to a large room. It looked like it may have once been a dinning hall, but now stood bare. Sensing that this was their destination, Ranma stopped at one side of the room while Altena continued to the other.

"Why don't we have a sparing match? I think that it may highlight several of the points that we have discussed."

'Sparing match? Ranma reappraised the woman across from him. She still seemed like the nice lady that he had met in the front of the manor. There was no look of strength in her eyes, no stance to indicate she was a martial artist worthy of his attention. But she had been kind enough to invite him here and provided a way out of the sticky mess he had been in previously.

"Sure I…" Ranma stepped back, a small impact hitting him in the chest. His eyes widened as he tentatively looked down. His breath caught as he found a trail of red freely running down his chest, coming from where his heart was. With a shaking hand he touched the spot, his eyes closing as he released a sigh when he made contact with unbroken skin, his heart still beating. Pulling his hand marked with the red liquid back to his nose, he found the smell of paint. Finally, Ranma looked back up to Altena, finding her pointing a very realistic looking gun straight at his heart.

"I wasn't…"

"…ready?" Altena asked, lowering the paint gun. "One of the realities of this mission is that those that you seek to stop are not honorable people like yourself, Ranma. They will take the shot without hesitation or warning. What if this had been a real gun? There would be no second chance, no rematch to see who the best is. You would be wounded with only your enemy to watch you lay dieing. Is that what you want; to be killed for no cause? I do not think I could bear the thought even after just meeting you."

Ranma stood stunned. Altena's words made sense; literally driven into him, the evidence currently dripping down his shirt. He had had no idea, but she was right. Plenty of people had attacked him with little to no warning. If they had used a gun… he would be dead.

* * *

Author's end notes: Ranma has met Altena and a mission is underway. I wanted to thank everyone that has reviewed this story. It would not be nearly as well developed if it wasn't for you. 

Here are a couple of questions I thought might come up. I'll add more if necessary.

Question: Why have you held a voting to establish the pairing? This should come naturally as the story progresses.

Answer: Usually this is very true. What matters most when an author starts a story varies from story to story. Sometimes it is a precise end that they envision, others a specific coupling. For this story it is more of a concept. In the world of Noir, all of the contestants were raised with the idea that killing is acceptable. This whole story is based off exploring exactly what would it take for Ranma with semi-normal standards against killing to become the embodiment of death.

Question: Altena never asked Ranma to kill Jamal. How could Ranma expect to force him to 'retire' otherwise?

Answer: There is a reason behind this, but mostly it is Altena using Ranma's naivety.

Thanks for reading,

brindani


	5. Training Begins

Author's notes: I was a little disappointed in the number of reviews for the last chapter which severely sapped my motivation to continue at the fast pace that I had been working at. Because of this I've changed my writing habit. I use to work exclusively on one story suppressing all the others bombarding my head. Now I'll work on what I find most interesting. Of course, I also want to satisfy the reader as well. If a lot of people really want to see a particular story sooner I'll make it a priority. I'll judge this if one of the stories receives 20 reviews or more. A large thanks goes to James Axelrad for checking over the story.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 5: Training Begins

Altena carefully watched Ranma's reaction, noticing how hard the realization came for him. 'This might work yet.' She thought to herself as she allowed Ranma to finish thinking.

Eventually, Ranma's face lifted of its own accord.

"How can I counter such a thing?"

"We will teach you. Guns are only a tool, a tool used by humans. If you can read the person, you will know when they intend to use the gun and strike before they fire. It will involve increasing your awareness, to feel your surroundings and know when someone is there. A person you can not see is more deadly then the one you do." Altena paused briefly, taking in Ranma's continued contemplative expression. "I believe that is enough for today. Why don't we retire for the night?" Altena asked, gesturing behind him. Ranma turned surprised to find a window framing a flaming sunset filled with oranges and reds.

'Where did the time go?' Ranma thought to himself.

"If you follow me, Chloe should have something ready for dinner shortly." Altena invited, leaving through the same doorway that they had entered. Ranma's head felt like it was spinning. Not only had he been exposed to revelation after revelation, this manor was some kind of labyrinth with twists and turns everywhere. If he did not have Altena as a guide, he would be as lost as Ryoga in a room with one door.

Soon they arrived to a small room that could only be described as sparse. The table and chairs were well worn, yet sturdy oak wood. It once again made Ranma wonder about these people. They were eating at a poor impoverished table and yet able to afford to bring him here in a private jet.

Shrugging his shoulders, Ranma sat down in one of the chairs, Altena taking the place in front of him. Both waited patently until Chloe arrived in a red house dress, balancing three plates of spaghetti between her two hands. Ranma blinked, he had never seen her wear anything aside from her green cloak. He had to admit she looked very good, but that could also be due to the expertly placed plate of food before him. She positioned another in front of Alena and the last on the empty spot beside Altena where she took a seat herself.

Ranma took a long look at the plate. It kind of looked like ramen, but there was no broth or even a fishcake.

"What is it?" Ranma asked bluntly.

Altena smiled as Chloe frowned. "It's spaghetti."

"Oh, I don't think I've ever had that before." Ranma said continuing to look down at the meatball covered creation in front of him.

After several seconds of Ranma nervously shifting around, a small twitch developed on Chloe's brow.

"Would you prefer a pair of chopsticks, Ranma?" Altena asked noticing Ranma's eyes subtly glance at the fork next to plate with apprehension.

Relieved Ranma nodded his head. He hadn't had to use this foreign kitchenware before. If he had to, he would figure it out; food was far too important to just leave lying untouched, but he much preferred chopsticks if possible.

Altena stood up and left the table briefly stepping through the same door Chloe entered before returning with a pair of intricately engraved chopsticks with a spiral dragon laced around the main body. When she reached the table she lightly handed the chopsticks to Ranma who gratefully accepted them.

Ranma was about to put them to good use before he felt an intense glare. From personal experience, nothing good ever came from such looks. They always meant that he had done something wrong and were usually followed closely by blunt objects. Glancing up, he found Chloe looking at him hard and Altena watching him closely. Ranma knew he was missing something. Was there some foreign custom that he didn't know about? Perhaps he forgot… oh.

"Um thank you for the chopsticks." Ranma restrained a sigh when the glare toned down several notches and Altena's smile took on its more typical sereneness.

"Your welcome, Ranma."

Ranma continued to watch them warily until they each picked up a fork and started to eat at a sedate pace. Smiling that everything was alright again, Ranma started to eat with his usual gusto. Soon after, he cringed, feeling the glare return full force. Ranma stopped to look up finding Altena's eyes were wide and Chloe shooting a -20 C grade glare.

"Um, it's really good." Ranma said taking a guess what the newest problem might be. Girls always seemed to get angry if he didn't complement their cooking for some reason. Noticing that the glare had not dissipated, Ranma became truly confused.

'What did I do now?' Ranma thought to himself. Looking to Altena for clarification, he found her sigh, as close to a resigned look on her face as he had seen since he arrived.

"So the files were correct?" Chloe asked turning to Altena.

"Yes, we will have to work on manners as well."

'Manners? Without pops here, I've only been doing a quarter of my speed so I don't see anything wrong.' Ranma thought to himself.

"We will discuss this at a later time. For tonight we shall enjoy this excellent meal that Chloe has prepared for us."

'Guess she'll explain what she was talking about later.' Ranma thought to himself before going back to the food with only an eighth his speed in case that was what was causing Chloe's continued subtle glare. 'This situation may not be as violent as Nerima, but it looks like it might be just as tense.' Ranma thought to himself shivering slightly.

After dinner was finished, Altena led Ranma to a room with a bed. It wasn't nearly as soft as the one he had spent the night in yesterday, but it was far better then sleeping on a bed roll that he would have otherwise.

Ranma was embarrassed as Altena walked over and knelt next to him; looking like she might try to tuck him in.

"Ranma, we will begin training for your mission now."

"Now? If you wanted to do some late night training you could have told me before I got into the bed." Ranma stated, exasperated that she hadn't told him before he got comfy.

Altena only laugh lightly for a few seconds. "No, the country you are going to uses a different language. You will have to learn that language in order to fit in with the populous and not make yourself a target. To advance this process, we will use a technique to teach you while you sleep." Altena explained, removing a tape deck from a pocket and placing it next to Ranma. "You will listen to this while you sleep. It will start in twenty minuets after you press start giving you plenty of time to fall asleep. It will continue playing on its own until morning.

With your aptitude with languages, you should be able to learn the language adequately within a few weeks, just enough time to prepare you for the mission."

Ranma blinked, 'I guess that makes sense. Not every country uses Japanese or English as their primary language. Boy did I have to find that out the hard way in China. It took forever to find a bathroom when we went into town. It was pure luck that some of the people were nice enough to go rather slow and knew Japanese to tell me what they were saying or I would have been totally lost. It was too bad that I didn't get the chance to learn how to read as well as understand the language. If I could, I would have understood the signs warning people away from those blasted springs and would never have received the curse in the first place.'

"Ok." Ranma replied, taking the device as Altena smiled before proceeding out the door. "Altena?" Ranma asked hesitantly. Said woman stopped in the doorway, turning to face the boy in who did not quite meet her eyes. Ranma was a little surprised as the light from the hallway framed her face making her appear angelic. It took several moments for Ranma to work up the courage to say what he wanted to. "Thank you for giving me this chance. It… means a lot to me," Ranma finished in an unusual sign of appreciation.

Altena smiled back at him before replying. "Your very welcome, Ranma. Please remember that you are also helping me by doing this as well; saving all of those people is important. Good night, Ranma. We will start early tomorrow."

"Good night." Ranma said, turning on his side as she left the room. Ranma fell asleep very fast, exhausted from everything that had happened that day. Snuggling up to the sheets, Ranma could swear that he was more comfortable in this room then he had been in the hotel.

* * *

The sun rose slowly, creeping its way through Ranma's window and settling on his face.

The weak rays' efforts were wasted against Ranma's strong instinct for sleep. Chloe found him thus as she walked through his door in her standard green cloak.

She stopped when she realized that Ranma was still sleeping and not raising with the sun as was standard in the manor. She was half tempted to leave him lying there. Altena still had not told her why she had had Chloe bring this strange boy to the sacred land of the Soldats and then to offer a mission to him that she could have easily accomplished for Altena if she really wanted it done.

Unconsciously, Chloe withdrew one of her throwing knives; flipping it around in her dexterous fingers while considering exactly what to do with the boy. It wouldn't be proper to leave him like this especially as Altena wanted to speak with him. She was half tempted to just kill him. The only reason for his presences that Chloe could think of was that Altena wanted him to become an assassin. Still, he couldn't make much of an assassin if someone could simply walk into the room he was sleeping in and play with a throwing knife. On second thought, he had moved faster and with more skill then even she during that odd battle with the blind boy. Maybe there would be some hope for him. Making up her mind to allow fate to make her choice, Chloe raised the knife in her hand and sharply threw it towards Ranma's still form.

"OWWW!"

* * *

Altena sat with one eyebrow raised as she critically examined the two youths in front of her. Ranma had a thin cut along his ear and Chloe had a black eye, each glaring daggers at the other.

"What happened?" She asked Chloe.

"He hit me."

"Ranma?" Altena asked turning towards said boy.

"She threw a knife at me in my sleep; it was an automatic reaction." When Altena raised a brow, Ranma continued. "At home, all sorts of weird people would attack me when I'm sleeping. I kinda got used to automatically counter attacking."

"I see, Chloe we will talk about this later. We have many things to do and it is essential for the two of you to work together for what is to come."

"I understand," Chloe said reluctantly as if having her hand caught in the cookie jar.

"Why don't you practice throwing while I speak with Ranma?"

"Okay," Chloe accepted reluctantly as she turned away, walking out the door.

Once Chloe left, Altena turned to Ranma who was curiously watching Chloe leave.

"I apologize for Chloe's behavior. She can be very rambunctious at times."

"Why would she do that? I'm use to people doing similar at home, but why would someone I don't even know until two days ago do the same thing?" Ranma asked after turning back to Altena.

"There may be reasons regarding your stay here. I will speak with Chloe and make sure that it does not happen again. Now we have many things to work on before you are ready for the mission ahead of you."

"Ok, what do I have to do?" Ranma asked before feeling a chill go down his back at the intense smile that came across Altena's features.

* * *

Ranma shivered in frustration as he tried to wipe the various colors of paint dripping all over his shirt. It would take forever to work it all out if it was possible at all. He didn't know why, but Altena had emphasized the fact that he would be washing the stuff off his own cloths, something about it being motivation to do better. If that wasn't motivation enough, if all of his current cloths were ruined, Altena warned him that he would have to borrow some of Chloe's wardrobe until the were able to get replacements.

Who would have thought that there was even a method for such training. Pop's sure wouldn't have thought of it.

The training consisted of him standing in one place while Altena stood in front of him, across the room. She would hold a paint gun on him and he would have to sense when she meant to use it. So far he had had little luck. There seemed to be no outward sign that she would pull the trigger. She had a poker face, even if a caring one, that could fool any pro-gambler. The best that he could manage was to start moving just as the bullet launched which only ended up making it off center from his heart.

He felt rather embarrassed; the training was suppose to be about him adapting to someone else holding a gun and it ended up with Altena adapting faster to his own movements.. Left right down, up, it didn't matter how he tried, she would inevitably hit on or near the mark. It definitely put her speed idea into perspective. He was seriously considering changing into a girl just to dodge one of those pellets at least once to prove he could do it.

He was a man and he would adapt. He just had to find a way to predict her movements and make his own so unpredictable she wouldn't be able to track him. There had to be a way. He would find one because he was Ranma and he didn't loose.

Ranma sighed as he entered the laundry room and put his shirt onto the washboard to try and work out the stain. The lack of electricity made it necessary to do it by hand, but he didn't have to like it.

Scrubbing became routine as Ranma's eyes glazed over with boredom. Never one to let an opportunity pass, Ranma decided to explore his ki sense from yesterday. Letting out his senses he deliberately confined them to the room he sat in, not wanting to have an overload of information like last time.

As expected, Ranma found the room in various shades of grays to black. Not much more to see then when he had his eyes open though it was kind of neat seeing everything all at once.

'Wait, what am I seeing if there is nothing to give off life energy?' Ranma thought to himself.

Curious Ranma looked a little closer. Focusing as he had never done before, Ranma concentrated on one spot on the far wall. He was amazed to find the detail as he continued down level by level. It was almost like looking through a microscope like they had done once in Biology. Wait a minute, Biology? Ranma almost shook his head. To prove his theory he began to scan a little more and quickly found what he was looking for: microorganisms. They weren't giving off very much energy, but there were certainly enough of them to give an outline of the room. That would also account for why the room was so drab. They could outline it, but lacked the true emotions of other beings to provide any color.

Satisfied with his findings, Ranma panned out and was startled to realize how everything became a little sharper. For a moment he could even see echoes that rippled the microorganisms. In fact, that felt a lot like an impact.

Stopping his scan, Ranma found that he could faintly hear something outside. Cocking his head, Ranma turned towards the noise coming from the window. It was a soft thunking sound that repeated itself regularly.

Curiosity peaked; Ranma let his soiled shirt drop into the basin while he stood to take a look out the window. He scanned the grape vines that extended in all directions before finding the origin of the sound. It was coming from around the corner of the window. Turning, he found Chloe standing before four large targets; leaping everyway imaginable while hitting on all four with perfect precision.

Ranma was sure that he could do the same himself with a little training, but he had to admit that she was very good with a throwing knife.

Silently, Ranma snuck out of the window, the girl deserved some payback for that morning. A good scare would serve her right after throwing a knife at him. His ear still stung a little as it hadn't quite fully healed.

Landing quietly, Ranma started to trek his way towards his unsuspecting target. She was busy throwing knives left and right at those targets of hers.

Going from one tree to the next, he watched as she hit perfect bull's-eyes each time without even trying. If he guessed right she might not even be paying attention to what she was doing, her body just going through the motions.

'Wow, how long must she have been doing this to be able to land perfect shots and not even think about it?' Ranma thought to himself as he continued to watch her from behind a tree.

His martial arts gears started turning as he began to analyze her movements. It smacked of martial arts though it felt off at the same time. He watched the angle, the force, the flip of the wrist she used on every throw. It changed from target to target, but the basics were all there.

Ranma jumped back as his danger senses screamed at him. Just in time to avoid two knives where his heart had been just moments ago.

"What did ya do that for!" Ranma screamed at Chloe who watched him were she held three more blades at the ready.

"Do not sneak up on me. If you don't want to die that is." Chloe stated, dismissing Ranma almost as fast as she had thrown her knives.

Ranma raised an eyebrow. She was definitely dangerous without question. Somehow he felt she was similar to him; judging from her reactions, she was trained at a young age to be the best.

Forgoing concealment, Ranma approached Chloe as she continued to throw her knives. Settling back against a convenient tree, Ranma watched as Chloe continued as if oblivious to his presence. That didn't happen often so Ranma decided to make himself known, Ranma style.

"You're pretty good with those things. I bet I'm better."

Chloe stopped her throw midway before turning to Ranma with incredulity. This quickly evolved into a smirk before handing a set of five knives to Ranma.

Ranma smiled, he loved a challenge. Hefting one of the knives up, he twirled it around in his fingers to get a feel for the blade. He was surprised to find that the balance was perfect. He had never come across knives so well balanced in his past.

Flipping the blade up with one hand, his other sprang forward grasping the blade before throwing it for a perfect bull's-eye on the center target. Smiling to himself, he turned back to Chloe expecting her to acknowledge his great ability. He frowned when he found her looking at him like he was a dimwit.

"What?"

"Is throwing one at a time the best you can do? I learned that when I was four. Try again with all five." Chloe commanded giving Ranma another blade to bring his number back to five.

Critically looking at the blades he placed them all in between each of his fingers with two set between his middle and index finger. It felt really uncomfortable, but she had challenged him and Ranma Saotome never left a challenge unanswered. He examined the five targets set before him and took careful aim.

Hefting his hand up, he let go sending five knives speeding towards their target. Ranma stood silent as he watched the middle hit another bull's-eye right next to his last attempt. The ones next to it were two sections away, of the outer two, one missed totally while the other stuck in the outermost field.

"Not bad, for a beginner." Chloe said off hand.

"Beginner? I'm the best there is." Ranma said instantly agitated.

"Right, why don't you prove it?" Chloe asked, turning to Ranma, her eyes focused on his.

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing much, just a test of skill. See who the better really is." Chloe replied with an unnerving smile.

"If that's the way you want it, then you're on!" Ranma stated confident that anything involving a fight he would be superior in.

"Follow me." Chloe said quickly walking away from the manor.

Ranma followed after her, but quickly became confused as they entered the grape vines.

"Where are we going, we could have had a quick spar where we were."

"I have a much better place in mind for our little fight." Chloe mumbled.

Ranma raised an eyebrow before looking ahead in the direction they were going. He found the large coliseum he saw when they first arrived directly in their path. 'Well this should be interesting. Don't think I've ever fought in something so large before.' Ranma thought to himself as they continued.

* * *

Ranma stood on one side of the coliseum, his hands around a broad sword straight out of a medieval movie. He glanced at the opposite side of the large arena where Chloe held his sword's twin.

"The rules are simple, the winner will be the one that gives up or is unable to… continue." She said with a covert smile. "Begin."

With no wasted words, Chloe charged across the sand between them, raising her sword for a quick strike.

Unfamiliar with the weapon, Ranma raised his own sword to block at a bad angle. The clang of the two connecting echoed throughout the stadium. Chloe's pulled back her blade to deliver another blow to the side, fainting at the last moment.

Still adapting to the blade that he held, Ranma was only able to partially block before being forced to jump away from the second strike to his legs. Tucking into a roll, he came up and quickly met the blade aimed for his shoulder.

'She's good' Ranma thought as he swiveled and attempted to sneak a strike in himself before thrust into the defense by a cleaver twist around his blade and coming up with her own.

In a blink of an eye, Chloe thrust her blade out throwing Ranma's away from him while managing a kick that sent him sprawling away from her.

"How pathetic, do you concede?" Chloe asked, her blade held casually in front of her.

Ranma calmly stood up whipping his hands together. Glancing up, Chloe was surprised to find the boy was smiling.

"We fought in your specialty. Now it is my turn." Ranma ran straight at Chloe who sniffed dismissively. No one had ever defeated her with blade in hand, except for _her_ and even she couldn't defeat Chloe without a blade of her own.

Chloe swung her sword to intersect him horizontally, but found that he jumped off the flat of her blade, sharply striking her stomach while hitting her forearm with a quick kick.

Her blade went flying away while Ranma recovered by rolling away from her.

Stunned, she turned towards the boy who stood with a triumphant smile.

"I haven't trained much with the sword, not nearly as much as you, but I have plenty of experience against them." Ranma said with an arrogant smirk quickly spreading across his face. "So, _you_ want to forfeit?"

Chloe narrowed her eyes, incensed at the petulant little boy before her. Slowly, her hands took hold of her throwing knives. 'This person deserves to die.' Chloe thought to herself, preparing to strike.

"Stop."

Both combatants turned to the entrance where Altena walked in peacefully. Both flinched when her pleasant smile was noticeably absent; in its place a frown.

Altena ignored the two contestants, walking directly in-between the two before stopping; her eyes closed taking deep breaths. After several intense moments, Altena turned to Ranma. "Ranma, you have not finished cleaning your shirt. If you do not get the stain out by the time I return, you will be in charge of all of the chores tomorrow."

Ranma's eyes widened. He had watched Altena performing many of said chores and it didn't look all much fun especially with how large the manor was. He didn't want to get stuck with all those. Frantically he turned and dashed out of the coliseum, desperately trying to get back and finish his assigned duty before the apparently angry Altena made it back.

Altena watched him leave for several seconds before turning to Chloe with a disapproving glance. Chloe flinched under the hard gaze unwilling to meet the look so foreign to the face she knew and loved.

"Chloe let us walk for a little while."

Reluctantly, Chloe slipped her throwing knife back into place before following Altena with a nerves gate to her step.

Altena simply left out of the coliseum, heading towards the grape fields. Chloe followed behind her, waiting for the expected reprimand. Altena simply walked along as if she were not being followed. It was eating Chloe up inside as ten minutes past with not a word spoken.

She was almost relieved, if nerves when they finally stopped in the middle of the field, Altena cupped a large group of grapes looking at them with serene eyes.

"Chloe, do you know what Ranma is?"

Taken aback by the question, Chloe thought about all of the background information that Altena had had her look through prior to retrieving the boy.

"He is a martial artist returned from a ten year training journey with his father Genma Soetome to learn the Anything Goes School of martial arts. He has had multiple adventures involving odd circumstances including competing martial artists, fiancées, and a skeptical report of a cat ghost. Most of these appear unbelievable, but some can be corroborated by my recent journey to bring him here."

"He is Noir."

Chloe stopped dead in her tracks. "But…"

"How is it possible?" Altena asked for her young charge.

"He is a guy, it shouldn't be possible for him to be apart of Noir."

"Yes, it was quite startling when the last high priestess named him as a candidate for Noir upon his birth. Many questioned her choice as high priestess. Some think this decision lead directly to her disappearance shortly after. The Soldats forgot about the little boy named to a station that would have nothing to do with him. That is until recently when his training trip left him with the ability to change into a girl. I'm left to wonder if the old high priestess somehow knew that this would happen. Now that it has, he has become the fourth sapling."

"He could never…"

"…be able to handle being apart of Noir? You fought him yourself. He does not have a killing instinct, but he was able to fight you to a standstill even with your favored weapon. If he were trained properly, he could be apart of the best Noir the Soldats has ever seen."

"…but what about… _her_?"

"That will be decided at the ceremony. You know that."

"Of course."

"Now why don't we go and see if Ranma has managed to lift that stain?" Altena asked heading back towards the manor.

Boosting Chloe's mood, she lifted her head. Knowing Ranma, he didn't even know how to wash a shirt. This could be fun!

* * *

Post author's notes: Not really much to say that wasn't in the original notes. If anyone has a question about what is happening in the chapter please send me an email and I'll add the answer into a Q&A section below. 


	6. Practice Makes Perfect

Author's notes: I know, it's been a long time since the last update and my current status shows two chapters have been complete for some time. For some reason I've been in a heavy writing mood without the converse desire to review what I've written. I guess there are just too many scenes flashing in the back of my mind.

Special thanks goes out to James Axelrad for reviewing the chapter. I would also like to thank Calamity-Queen of Cordite who, despite me reviewing her highly recommended story 'The Wild Horse Thesis', took the time to respond to see how my story was coming along.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 6: Practice Makes Perfect

Walking into the washroom removed the smile from Chloe's face, quickly replaced by an incredulous stare. Before her stood Ranma, whistling off key, in a teal Chinese outfit while hanging a pristine red shirt onto the cloths line. There was not even a hint of paint on the cloth.

"What…? You know how to remove stains?" Chloe asked as Ranma smoothed wrinkles from the shirt.

Turning around, Ranma scratched his head. "What do you mean? I had to do this kind of stuff all the time on the road. Do you think pops did the laundry?" Ranma asked, chuckling at the thought of his father doing laundry.

Narrowing her eyes, Chloe rigidly left the room, leaving Altena smiling serenely. "Very nice, Ranma. After lunch we will begin training again." Ranma grinned, leaving his shirt to dry before following Altena to a long anticipated lunch.

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Ranma grumbled to himself as he shuffled into the main hall. He was finally able to do that on his own after a day of wandering aimlessly through random corridors.

This wasn't the only thing bothering him recently. Altena's methods to combine the art of reading people with the speed needed to circumvent their firearm was becoming frustrating.

Stopping outside the main training room, Ranma leaned up against the wall with a hand to his forehead in an attempt to prevent the oncoming headache. After a moment he stood, raising one hand. He silently flipped out several fingers stopping at three, Ranma realized he was about to enter his fourth training session for the morning. In each instance his shirt resembled a veritable rainbow of colors that took an hour to clean out before he was allowed to begin again. The actual training he didn't mind, but he was seriously beginning to think that his fingers were going to become permanently pruned.

Heaving one last sigh, Ranma removed himself from the wall, entering the room where he found Altena waited, exactly as he had left her an hour ago. 'Had she even moved?' Ranma wondered.

Giving a slight bow which was reciprocated, Ranma took position across from Altena. Eyes closed, Ranma took several deep cleansing breaths, helping to center himself for the ordeal ahead. After a minute of the mental exercise, Ranma spread himself out into a basic stance designed for quick spontaneous movement. Opening his eyes, Ranma nodded to Altena, indicating he was ready for her to begin.

Eyes narrowed, the pigtailed youth studied his opponent, taking in every inch of her countenance, attempting to spot any trace of action that could indicate action.

Minutes stretched out as Ranma kept his body tense in anticipation. He knew he was still not fast enough to dodge the bullet even with all the training. That meant he had to spot some critical sign to supplement the difference. Unfortunately, no such sign had ever manifested, typically leaving Ranma covered in paint.

A small bead of sweat trickled down his brow as nearly five minutes past with no action. 'She has never taken this long. Is there something else I should be doing?' Ranma asked himself, concerned he may be missing something critical.

At exactly six minutes Altena silently lowered the weapon, pocketing the gun before lightly stepping up to Ranma.

Blinking at the unexpected movement, Ranma dropped his guard, standing up straight.

"I have a request." Altena said, apparently oblivious to Ranma's surprise.

Ranma blinked again, this was the first request since the mission. Curiosity overwhelming him, Ranma took the bait.

"What's that?"

"Ever since you arrived you have stayed in your male form." Ranma lifted a finger to his chin. To his amazement, he realized he had stayed male the entire time. That had never happened before. Usually the weather itself would alter to change him a couple of times a day. "I would like to see the curse and confirm several of Chloe's observations."

Ranma frowned. It was nice to remain male for so long. Still, Altena had taken very good care of him; providing meals and training. 'Just this once, I guess.' Ranma thought with a mental sigh.

"Okay," Ranma reluctantly agreed. He noticed a cup of water held in her right hand. Reluctantly he took the water from her grasp, splashing himself with it before allowing a small groan as the change swept through her. Looking back up to her hostess, Ranma expected to see disgust or perhaps pity. She was surprised and little puzzled to find a satisfied smile.

"Shall we try again?" the older woman asked, taking position at the other end of the room.

Ranma nodded before tensing. She watched with critical eyes as Altena raised the paint gun. While watching the ever calm exterior, Ranma's mind made a connection. She had developed her ki senses and she may have just found a use for them. Directing them on Altena for the first time, she felt an intense black aura swirling around very similar though far more developed then Chloe's. It was by far darker with not even a glint of light. Not allowing herself to be distracted, Ranma carefully watched every inch of each swirl before feeling a spike.

'There!' Ranma darted into a roll, leaping to the ceiling, springing to one of the pillars before dropping to the ground. Glancing up, she found Altena smiling, six marks spread across pillars, ceiling and floor apparently indiscriminately.

"Very good Ranma. Do you understand now?"

Thinking back, Ranma found her mind tracking exactly how close she sensed the pellets. If she had been male she wouldn't have made it even with her advanced warning.

'Damn! I still ain't fast enough. I need to train more. I'll be able to dodge it… eventually.' Ranma's eyes widened as she realized how much training it would take to go as fast in her male form.

"I've heard amazing tales of how you can increase your speed and power in a short duration, but even taking them into account it will take an additional month or three." Ranma's eyes lowered in concentration. Ranma thought her estimation short a year or two. Standing silently for a moment, Altena decided another nudge was in order. "Even when you have achieved the speed to barely dodge a bullet, imagine how fast your female form will be." The speed increase on her female form would be substantial. "You must also remember that every minute wasted here is that much more suffering those people have to endure. It would be your choice, but I think it best if we started training exclusively in your female form."

Ranma's body stiffened. 'Train exclusively as a girl!'

Shuddering, Ranma forced herself to calm down, taking deep calming breaths. 'Focus', the red-haired martial artist screamed mentally before concentrated on what her newest sensei said and the implications of it. Training in girl form; she had done it before. There was also no denying that it would improve her chances of survival as the newest playing field was survival of the fastest.

'Being a girl for the rest of the time?' Feeling something wet on her hand, Ranma looked down to find a white clinched fist with a small tendril of blood dripping to the ground. Forcibly, Ranma relaxed her hand.

Shifting her eyes from hand to her right pocket, Ranma tentatively reached in, pulling a warn picture detailing a tortured little girl behind bars pleadingly reaching out. Ranma felt drawn to the girl as if she was reaching for Ranma, pleading to her for help. Rubbing her arm across her eyes, wiping suspicious moister away, Ranma giggled. It was short and choppy lacking any real humor.

Shaking her head Ranma realized that if someone asked her to stay female just last week she would have laughed in their face, but now…

"I'll do it." She stated, carefully putting the reminder of what she was doing back into her pocket for safe keeping.

"Good, Chloe is outside to start your training in how to throw." Altena said before walking away.

"Training how to throwing? Why would I need that?"

Altena smiled. "It is another part of your training. It will be invaluable if find yourself in a situation without a weapon."

"I can already throw well," Ranma replied. She was the best after all.

Altena stopped in the doorway, not quite facing the young woman standing behind her.

"Ranma, what have I said?" Altena asked with a hint of reprimand.

Ranma lowered her head. "That it doesn't matter if you're the best, I should take advantage of every opportunity to accomplish the mission and get out alive. Yeah, yeah, I'm going." Smiling, Altena watched as Ranma left before leaving to take care of a few troublesome problems developing elsewhere.

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Walking outside, Ranma found Chloe sitting next to a tree, her eyes closed.

"What took you so long?" she asked not bothering to move from her spot.

"I just got told to come out here," Ranma answered, nervously looking away.

"Right, and…?"

"Ok, I made a wrong turn, but only once this time." Ranma exclaimed in exasperation.

Chloe chuckled lightly before standing up to proffer a box to Ranma.

Looking in, she found it full of knives.

"Now, let's get to practicing. If you need help on how to throw the knife right, just ask." Chloe said negligently before sitting down next to the tree again. Ranma continued to stare at her incredulously. "Go ahead and start." Chloe encouraged, lazily waving towards the twenty targets some hundred yards away.

Ranma frowned. Despite what Altena said, she already knew how to throw a knife. In fact, she decided to show Chloe how it was done. Taking the box, Ranma lowered a hand to take one. Grinning, Ranma decided to reveal one of her specialties.

"Kachuu Tenshin Amiguriken revised, Knife Barrage!" Using her incredible speed Ranma flung a hail of knives at their targets. In less then five seconds the box was bare. Grunting happily she turned back to Chloe triumphantly.

"Told you I can throw." A self-satisfied smirk plastered across the redhead's face.

Chloe, her eyes mere slit, looked up at the self-absorbed martial artist for a moment before shaking her head and started speaking as if talking to an exceptionally inept child. "You were certainly fast and if you had enough knives you could take out an army, but if you have a split second with only three knives to disable three armed targets you would be dead. If you hadn't noticed only about an eighth landed in the bulls-eye area. Another half on the target and the rest missed all together. You need to learn to perfect your throwing skills with any number of knives at any time or with anything else that happens to be handy. Now pick them up and try again. This time use only one per throw hitting each target in sequence from left to right at five second intervals until you run out of knives. Any that do not hit the bulls-eye will land you a chore of my choosing."

"What! Who gave you the right to give me chores?"

"Altena gave me permission to help motivate you. Besides, what have you done here aside from washing the paint from your cloths? Now pick up the knives." Chloe ordered before closing her eyes and lounging against the tree.

Ranma hurried to pick up the knives as she was pretty sure if she wasn't fast Chloe would come up with something to help 'motivate' her. This sounded like it could turn out to be another long day.

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Ranma stretched her aching arms. She had been throwing knives for hours, one at a time at that blasted five second interval. Switching every fifteen minutes to her other arm. Still she was proud that only four missed their target with one penalty for taking six seconds to throw one of the knives. For someone who had her eyes closed, Chloe sure caught any mistake, typically before she made it. Every time one of the knives went off target she would suggest corrections for the particular throw. Of course this was followed by a chore that the mistake would cost her.

She now had to make dinner, wash the dishes, clean the cloths for the day, wash Chloe's bedroom floor, and clean off the table.

She could swear that Chloe looked disappointed when Altena came out to tell her that Ranma would need to start dinner soon. Ranma stopped her preparations for a moment to scratch her head, how did Altena know that dinner was one of the chores she was assigned?

Shrugging her shoulders, Ranma let the thought go. Turning back to the food, she felt a shiver go down her spine. The grin on Chloe's face was down right sadistic when she mentioned tomorrow would include two knives at a time in the same time sequence. Ranma had the distinct impression she was in for a lot more chores all too soon.

Ranma continued chopping onions for the soup with one hand while another traced the final ingredients from a recipe book she found in one of the cupboards.

Ranma smiled, while cooking was a chore and most definitely not manly, an issue she held at bay with iron determination, it allowed her to set the portions which meant she would finally have her fill for the first time in days.

Dropping the finely diced onions in and stirring so that they mixed nicely with everything else, Ranma lifting the soup off of the fire before checking on the fish. She didn't know how they had fresh fish out in the middle of nowhere with no electricity, but when she asked, Altena provided them.

They were pealing very nicely. She lightly seasoned them with salt, pepper, a little lemon along with several other seasonings she had seen Kasumi use to good effect.

With the fish almost done, Ranma turned her attention to the lettuce and various other vegetables spread across the counter. She loved this part. Placing the bowl exactly in the middle of the counter, Ranma haphazardly threw all the vegetables into the air. With a grin verging on insane, she joined them with a pair of long knives at the ready.

Arms disappeared in a blur of motion followed by the lettuce and vegetables rained down, perfectly aligned within the bowl. Ranma smirked as she landed lightly. Her mother would be proud; she remembered to wash the vegetables this time.

Finally, she came to the last dish for the meal, sushi. She had the rice already laid out and placed the nori (toasted seaweed sheet) in. 'Almost done,' Ranma thought to herself as she carefully put everything in.

With a final roll and several swift cuts, she arranged each tidbit onto plates. Performing a small miracle, she gathered everything for one large haul.

Both Altena and Chloe were waiting patently, semi-patently in Chloe's case, for the food to arrive. When Ranma appeared, they were startled to find all the dishes she was off-handily balancing. She easily placed all of the platters across the table before sitting down in her customary place.

Each examined the small banquet now arranged neatly on the table before looking back at Ranma.

"Thank you, Ranma, this is a magnificent feast." Altena complemented as she gestured to all the food before her. She knew Ranma had asked for fresh fish, but she hadn't expected something quite so grand.

Chloe eyed all the food in slight wonderment as well.

"Isn't there too much? A lot of this will go to waste." Chloe asked. Ranma responded only by grinning ear to ear.

"Oh, I don't think any of it will go to waste."

Altena simply shook her head. "Remember Ranma…" Ranma frowned as she had had her chopsticks poised for the coupdegra.

"Alright, I remember, eat at a slow pace; no one is going to snatch the food out from under me." Altena nodded while Ranma despaired. It was going to take forever to get her fill now.

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Chloe was furious. She hadn't been able to find a certain redhead anywhere all day. Stomping her foot as she reached the edge of the manor, the girl frowned. Even after only four days she could tell Ranma was improving her throwing skill at a voracious rate. Pretty soon she would be up to Chloe's standard if not her practiced ease. Still, the errant girl needed more practice especially indicative of all the chores Ranma still had to do.

She had already asked Altena and even she didn't know where Ranma had gone. Usually at least Altena knew where to find the newest member of the house.

Releasing a frustrated sigh, Chloe started checking the grape vineyard again. Ranma had been known to wonder through them, taking a grape or two while enjoying the fresh fragrant scent. She wasn't able to do it often with all the training, but if she wasn't in the manor studying, she was surely out here. The only problem was that Chloe had completed several circuits already and had yet to hear or see any trace of the pigtailed youth.

"Damn it, where are you Ranma!" Chloe screamed.

BOOM!

Chloe's head whipped around to the mountain-side two miles out. Squinting, Chloe scanned for any signs of an enemy. Seeing no outlines that would indicate bombers through the huge dust cloud, the purple-red haired girl relaxed her stance. So it wasn't an invasion. Yet none of the villagers would come up here without permission. So then what was th… A tick started to form in Chloe's brow; somehow she just knew Ranma was involved.

Grumbling, Chloe began the long run to reach the epicenter.

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When Chloe arrived, she found Ranma standing very still, her palms outstretched with sweat poring down her face.

Seeing that Ranma didn't appear to notice her presence, Chloe decided to indulge her curiosity by drawing closer. Ranma was proficient with weapons, but at the same time she disdained explosives, so what was she doing?

Chloe watched as a blue ball formed in-between the other girl's outstretched hands. It grew rapidly from a pebble to a bowling ball sized sphere with a myriad of blue shades shifting through its interior, slowly settling into a steady baby blue.

'What is that? I've never seen energy come from a person before. Wait, I've read ancient Chinese legends of something called Ki, but none of my instructors have ever been able to do or mentioned seeing anything like this.' Chloe was so engrossed in her introspective that she missed Ranma's eyes slamming open before she hastily threw the sphere down before sprinting away.

KABOOM!

Chloe did not miss the explosion that swept her off her feet, spinning her wildly into the air.

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Ranma snuck away from the manor earlier that day. The training was defiantly starting show results in her accuracy even if the chores were getting downright annoying. Still a new idea kept tugging at the back of her mind; one she doubted Altena wanted tested indoors. It was based off of the attack Mouko Takabisha revised Bokusai Tenketsu Shatter Storm she used against Cologne. The idea behind the attack was to stabilize the ball of ki before throwing it, after a couple of seconds it would destabilize and burst out, striking critical points in stone.

When she went over the main plan, she realized that several well timed diversions would afford her leeway in getting out safely. Going over the maps and timetables, she found critical areas and times when they were lightly guarded. If something happened to one of them, it would attract every solder for miles. Then it struck her, if she could stabilize the blast for a few seconds it took to throw then it should be possible to prolong the time. Ranma quickly found that that kind of stabilization was rather… elusive.

It took a lot more energy to force the ki patterns into a relaxed state while setting a pulse that would aggravate it later on. She had already been caught in one of the unexpected explosions, her dirt ridden hair contested to that.

Still, she was making progress and it was lasting several minutes before she would have to calm the ki. It still wasn't nearly enough. This had to last for several hours and go off at a very specific time. She also had to be careful, if she put too much energy into it, it could damage an entire block. She couldn't allow that to happen.

'Maybe if I twisted the energy like… oh shoot!' The balls started to flux wildly. Hastily, Ranma lowered the ball of ki before making a run for it.

As she ran, Ranma heard the whirling sound that accompanied previous explosions begin to increase in tempo before...

KABOOM!

"AHHHHA!" Ranma froze in place. That yell wasn't hers. In fact it sounded like… whipping around in horror, Ranma found Chloe's unconscious form flying violently through the air.

Dashing through a hail of debris, Ranma leapt up, snatching Chloe out of the air before landing gently.

"Damn, what's she doing here? It's not important now." Ranma thought as she rushed back to the manor.

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"ALTENA!" Ranma screamed as she ran into the manor.

Said woman came into view from one of her rooms holding an open letter. When she saw Chloe, her eyes opened wide; dropping the letter, she rushed to Ranma's side.

"Quickly, in here," Altena directed, leading Ranma into a side room with medical supplies. Ranma laid the prone figure with care on the table and was immediately replaced by Altena as she examined the girl's condition. Seeing multiple shallow cuts across her body, she was relieved to find none appeared fatal.

Efficiently cleaning the wounds with Ranma handing her supplies, Altena made sure Chloe was stable, if a little bandaged, before turning a foreboding look that promised pain if not appeased.

Ranma took an involuntary step back.

"What happened?" Ranma wasn't skittish, but the cold undertone of that question sent shivers down her back. She had never felt so intimidated by any of the martial artists that had ever come calling.

Gulping, Ranma thought it best to answer promptly.

"I was practicing a new technique for the mission. I went out several miles so that no one would be close when I tested it. One of the tests went out of control and I ran for it. The next thing I know I heard Chloe scream. She got caught up in the explosion. I swear I never knew she was there. It took all my concentration to keep the new technique under control."

Altena took a deep breath before calming down.

"It's alright, Ranma. Chloe should have made herself known. You did everything in your power to make sure others were not involved."

Nodding her head, Ranma couldn't help feeling guilty. She should have made sure that there was no one. It was obvious that if anyone saw those explosions that they would come from miles to find out what was going on. Of course Chloe would be there. Ranma had even skipped one of their training sessions to develop it. Ranma should have known!

Ranma hung her head as Altena finished disinfecting the last of Chloe's smaller wounds. Sighing, Altena pulled a chair up to the bed, ready to look after her charge.

"Altena?" Said woman turned her attention to the redheaded girl going from one foot to the other in agitation.

"Yes?"

"Could I watch over Chloe?" Ranma asked.

Altena was about to decline before a thoughtful expression crossed her face.

Smiling lightly, Altena stood, gesturing to the chair.

Giving a grateful smile, Ranma nodded her head before taking the seat.

Altena stood at the door watching the two; taking in Ranma's worried expression as well as Chloe's slightly pained countenance. She wanted to stay close to her Chloe, but this unfortunate accident may very well turn into a blessing in disguise. She thought before leaving to attend to other Noir business.

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Chloe groaned, her head and body aching. This didn't make for a good combination. She hadn't felt this bad since the last time one of her trainers made an object lesson that no matter how good you were there was always someone better.

She had been young and shortly thereafter even her best instructors could not touch her. Only _she_ had been able to defeat Chloe.

The light streaming through the window was not helping as it seemed to pierce her skull and rattle an already agonizing headache. 'If only it would go away.' Turning her head helped lessen the pain, allowing semi-sentient thought. 'What happened?' Chloe thought to herself, still unsure as her mind seemed a gigantic haze.

Mustering her determination, Chloe cracked open her eyes against the residual light searing her senses. It was hard, but she pushed through. Everything appeared blurry. She recognized the medical room and a chair next to her. Chloe smiled to herself. Whatever had happened, Altena had stayed with her. She must have been out for a long time as she could hear faint snores drifting from the chair.

Sighing happily, Chloe turned on her side to face Altena. Her vision was still unclear, but she could make out the female form that sat there; the blanket that covered them; the long red hair pulled in a pigtail… wait a minute.

Chloe rubbed her eyes before taking another look.

She was startled to find that it wasn't Altena at all; it was Ranma.

Why wasn't Altena here watching over her? Every other time something happened to her Altena was stuck like glue to her bedside making sure that she was alright.

Chloe blinked as she recognized the worried expression etched on Ranma's face even in sleep. 'Did Ranma volunteer to look after me?' Chloe blinked several more times, no one else had ever done that except for Altena, she wasn't sure how to interpret it.

Settling back into the bed, confusion lighting her expression, Chloe's eyes started to drift shut.

'Maybe… maybe I could ease up a little on punishments. That should repay him for this.' Chloe thought before fading into a peaceful sleep.

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Author's post notes. Though it has taken awhile to get this finished the time seems to have helped as I was able to spot areas to add additional detail hopefully making it more interesting to read. Thanks to everyone that has submitted a review. They definitely help motivation to continue one with the story. Any comments, questions or suggestions are welcome either by review or direct email.

Q&A

Q. Chloe is showing far too much emotion to be considered in character.

A. First off, Ranma seems to have that effect on people no matter how rational. Second, from her perspective, Ranma is stealing most of Altena's attention for himself and she is very possessive of the older woman's attention hence the unusual actions.

Q. What is with the line breaks?

A. Unfortunately, the website's line breaks are not working so I had to improvise.

More to come as questions arrive.

For those that wanted a link to character data of the girls here is one:

http(colon)(forward slash)(forward slash)www(dot)animetique(dot)com(forward slash)animecharacters(dot)asp(question mark)pID(equals)38

and a basic synopsis of the story:

http(colon)(forward slash)(forward slash)www(dot)tokidokijournal (dot)com(forward slash)anime(forward slash)noir(forward slash)

Sorry about all the ()s but it is necessary or the links will be pruned while the story is posted.

Thanks for reading,

brindani

PS I don't know if anyone spotted it, but there is a small reference to the OVA series where Nodoka tries to help Akane learn how to cook.


	7. The Mission

author's notes: The last chapter ended up a victim of circumstance with that little problem the site had with not posting stories for half a day. I'm hoping that this one does not meet the same fate.

Thanks to James Axelrad for checking this chapter and giving ideas and suggestions on how to continue. His in-depth knowledge about guns has been useful in development of future.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 7: The Mission

The sky was a vivid azure blue with a blazing sun hovering far above the people milling listlessly about on the streets below. Not one had purpose in their step, walking to and fro from one driven destination to another, the life drained from their eyes. Even the bustling military SUV hurdling down the street drew few people's attention. It was a common sight these days; one among many less savory sights.

Of the crowd, there was one person who took careful notice. Sharp blue eyes darted from side to side, actions well hidden behind a thick dull grey veil. These eyes tracked the truck as it swerved around a corner, nearly hitting two children along the way. A carefully hidden scowl crossed the petite set of lips before returning to a neutral expression, emulating those around her.

As the woman shifted from one street to the next, she was surrounded by fewer and fewer people. Some of the listlessness left the peoples' eyes replaced by a harder edge. The girl took careful note of this before ducking into a deserted alley. She stopped half way as a voice echoed behind her.

"What have we here, a pretty little thing I think."

"What do you want?" drifted a calm even tone from beneath the veil.

"There aren't too many chances to have a little fun, when you can find it you have to take a firm grip. I think I found such a thing this day." The girl turned around features obscured by the veil. Six men stood at the entrance to the alley each wearing turbans. Five of them where undistinguished, seeming to blend in with the dull walls around them. Each carried a short knife drawn and wore a leer directed towards the girl. The person talking dressed ostentatiously with a dark purple velvet outfit, rings adorning each meaty finger and half a jewelers stock around his thick neck. Where his left eye once was remained only a jagged scar broken by a worn brown eye patch. His grin stood out in sharp relief, right hand twitching in anticipation. His other held an old pistol aimed at the girl's heart.

The figure took in each of their continence without a flicker of worry in her eyes. "I see, but are you sure I truly exist? Or perhaps I'm a figment of your imagination."

"Ha, ha ha. Then you're the best damn dream I've had in ages. My little friend, however, seems to think you're more then real enough for me." A nasty grin crossed the man's face as he gestured to his obvious interest below. "This will be the first time in months a girl stupid enough has entered our territory. I believe I'll take my time.

If you're really good I might even give you something extra nice to remember me and my men by." The man leisurely strolled up to the girl, raising his free hand towards her. "Why don't we unwrap our present a little early, yes?" With that he yanked the cloak away only to gawk. There was nothing beneath; frantically he searched the narrow alley to find his elusive prey. "Where did she go?" He demanded of the others still staring at the cloth as it fluttered to the ground.

"I don't know. She was there just a moment ago." A particularly small ratty man with a short roughly sheared beard answered in a high squeaky voice.

"Well find her. We won't have another chance for a long time; especially with all the military running around chasing rumors of an upcoming assassination attempt on the leader."

Hastily, the group disbanded, rapidly spreading in all directions to find what most were beginning to believe truly was a phantom.

If they had bothered to look up they may have caught a flash of red disappearing onto the rooftop.

"Pathetic," said the revealed Ranma as she briefly watched the thugs vacate. 'Would have loved to take them out, but it would draw too much attention. I can't afford to make a commotion just yet.

Now what was that about an assassination attempt? Is someone else after my target?' Ranma pondered that briefly before leaving it. 'There are too many other things to worry about right now.' Turning away from the street, Ranma examined the barren rooftop shared only by the backup power and entrance. 'Now this should be the building.' Ranma thought to herself.

Walking behind the backup power, she reached out a hand and concentrated her energy, reaching deep within herself to fix it just right. It took nearly ten minutes of deep effort before the ball formed the specific tint of blue, a small purple band along its surface. If examined closely, someone might notice that the purple band was not a straight line nor was it stationary. It circled around the globe only wavered slightly, slowly becoming larger and more erratic. In exactly three hours the thread would destabilize the perfectly neutral orb, setting it off. It had taken more then one explosion in the face to come up with the idea of a destabilization thread to set off the orb. Chloe spent countless hours sitting and shaking her head after each explosion, but Ranma showed her that there was nothing Ranma Soatome couldn't master.

Ranma smiled, quite happy she insisted on using her own methods. Altena wanted her to use bombs because they were faster to setup, but what she developed was, in her humble opinion, far superior. Bombs could be deactivated, but this thread was ki sensitive. If another ki signature other then her own came into contact with it, it would instantly destabilize. Lightly placing her newest pride and joy behind the generator, she stood up.

'That was the last one, now I just have to take care of the bad guy and I'll be all set.' Ranma thought as she took a glance at the streets below to make sure no hoodlums were still meandering around. Seeing that they had broadened their search five or six streets away, Ranma casually hopped off the roof, pulling a spare cloak and veil from her pocket before covering herself. She would have to be more cautious not to attract another group of thugs or she would lose her last reserve.

Carefully the girl merged with the other inhabitants making her way along the main streets. As she walked, she remained vigilant of the area around her and its occupants. There was too much at risk to allow inattention to destroy all the intense training she underwent for this day.

It was because of her heightened attention that she spotted them; a pair of girls, one older then the other. One's long golden locks were well hidden behind a dingy gray veil while the other wore a brown veil that hid her hair from view. As if a magnet, Ranma's eyes were drawn to the two. They looked nearly identical to any of the other people on the street yet… not. Something powerful resided in these two, even if she could not tell what. The blond seemed oblivious while silently speaking with her compatriot; still she kept a very subtle eye on everything around her. Trying to find what made them stand out, Ranma realized the defeated gate of the others simply was not present nor the drained expression.

The young one in particular drew her attention. The eyes were mournful even as she nodded in time with the conversation. Something was familiar; something she recognized yet could not quite place.

As she walked past the two, Ranma stopped. A tingle ran up her back; very similar to what she felt from Chloe and Altena. Turning her head slightly, Ranma found that the other two had stopped as well. The young one curiously looking back towards her.

"Is there something the matter, Kirika?"

"What?" Said girl asked as she turned back to her friend.

"Are you alright? We can't stand around all day now can we?" She asked looking over Kirika's shoulder to find what drew the younger girl's attention.

Flicking her eyes back, Kirika blinked as the girl that had given her the odd feeling had disappeared.

"It's nothing."

"Good, then let's go, we don't have much time to prepare."

"Yes."

* * *

Ranma watched carefully from a side street. Those two were tripping ever alarm in her mind like no tomorrow. They seemed innocent enough, but they had an aura that screamed danger. What were they doing here? Ranma realized that knowing her luck she would meet them again.

As the two disappeared into the crowd, Ranma resumed her own journey along the street. Staying to the main road, Ranma managed to avoid any other gangs and stayed low key to avoid attention from the periodic soldiers on patrol.

Nearly an hour later led Ranma to a large instillation. She spared only a brief glance at it so as not to attract interest.

None of the recon or satellite photos did the complex justice. It was a mammoth fortress spanning many thousands of square feet and three stories high. Recently abandoned houses framed it on each side. There was only one entrance. Five guards blocked the gate, suspiciously watching all of the people passing on the street, letting an occasional troop through, calling them by name.

'Guess the main gate is a no go, just like I thought.' Continuing along her way, Ranma didn't receive a second glance from the guard. Quietly she slipped down the next corner. Luckily no one seemed to be hanging around this alley.

Giving one last glance to the people walking along the road, their eyes turned to the sidewalk, hardly seeing anything to prevent the death sentence known as suspicion. Ranma calmed herself, allowing newly honed ki senses to stretch out. She was surprised to find very few soldiers in the compound. Only those at the gate appeared attentive at all. The others had tell-tale signs of an almost jovial spirit. They must be joking with each other.

Concentrating harder, Ranma determined where each was paying the most attention. Walking half a dozen steps further down the alley, Ranma jumped over the high wall and landed soundlessly next to the main building. Just as she had surmised, there were a few soldiers milling around in the inner court laughing at brazen jokes; totally oblivious they had just been infiltrated.

It worked to Ranma's advantage as she scurried into an open window. 'All too easy.'

* * *

Jamal stretched his arms out as he stood from his desk. Running a dictatorship was not all he had imagined. Simply dealing with the paperwork was time consuming and onerous. Even though many of his soldiers where loyal to the point of fanatical he still could not allow the sensitive information into their hands. You could never tell when a filthy spy would infiltrate with good acting skills. That was only one of thousands of duties he now had to manage.

Glancing at the remaining stack of papers, Jamal allowed his eyes to narrow. All of this blasted work left him little time to enjoy what he had won. Won despite all of the intimidation from factions like the United Nations. He had nearly lost it all as his hand was forced prematurely by some mysterious organization calling themselves the Soldats. They had attempted to head him off before the coup could take place. They were miserably unsuccessful as he triumphed despite their interference. It had led to much more bloodshed then he had intended, but it couldn't be helped.

Shaking his head, Jamal walked away from the desk to stretch his legs. A reprieve from the tedious paperwork sounded like a good idea. It was not like the papers would go anywhere. Besides, he had been neglecting his recently formed harem. He grinned with a wicked leer as he thought of the choice desert flowers he had discretely rounded up during the upheaval.

Still you can't leave women alone for too long. Though weak, they took delight in gossip and betrayal, especially when in groups. He was proud of the measures taken to establish a pecking order. The nearly daily changed favorite was treated virtually as a sultan's bride, giving her luxury mere common girls had never dreamt. Those unfavored suffered ridicule and scorn. The women were so set on scratching and clawing their way into his good graces to ever threaten him.

Jamal smirked; his women knew their place unlike so many of these other countries that tried to put their noses into his business. The smirk was replaced with a frown as he heard the door open.

"I said I do not wish to be disturbed, solder." He warned with a deadly edge to his voice. When he didn't hear an apology followed by a hasty exit, he turned around. "It appears you need a lesson in manors… Who are you? How did you get in here!" Jamal asked as he found himself face to face with a very shapely smirking redheaded girl.

"Neither question really matters. What does matter is what I want."

Jamals eyes danced across the figure, eyeing the exotic red hair. "If its a little fun you desire, I think I can make an exception for your intrusion." The speculative look dropped when the redhead scoffed.

"Like I would be interested in a bastard like you. I'm here to make sure you are stopped." The girl said while casually leaning against the wall.

Pulling himself up straight, Jamal straightened his suit before glaring at the infidel. "Stopped? Ha! You were lucky to avoid my guards, but with a single call they will come running to give you a nice slow torture session that will make you beg for death."

"If you are referring to the guards outside, they won't be coming to your beck and call for a long time so just shut-up." Ranma replied. Jamal found himself cascading back into his chair. Looking up with wide eyes, he found the redhead towering over him. He had not even seen her move!

Regaining his composure, the dictator straightened himself as if he had chosen to sit under his own power. "Impossible. You are a mere weak willed woman. You are incapable of harming my elite soldiers." He was answered by a wicked smirk. Eyes narrowing, Jamal continued. "Even if true, I'll take care of you myself." Opening his drawer he pulled out a gun pointing it at the girl before him. "Now if you would be so kind as to tell me who would send a filthy little girl to attack me, I'll allow you a fast death."

"You would be amazed what a girl can do. I've found myself constantly surprised recently."

"Answer my question!"

"No"

"Fine then I'll just have to watch you bleed to death ACHHH!"

Jamal found his gun tumble across the room, the bullets dislodged scattered everywhere, with a good view of it from under his desk as he clutched his throbbing stomach.

"You are way too slow. Now I believe we have things to discuss." Ranma said as she lifted the self-proclaimed president off the floor.

Wheezing hard, the man managed to glare at the impudent girl.

"I have nothing to say to you."

"Oh, I think you do," Ranma said roughly throwing the man across the room, smashing him into the far wall. Landing with a thud, the man spluttered as he attempted to recover his bearings.

Lifting his head, he found the girl glaring at him directly beside him. His eyes widened as he once again had not seen her move.

"I've seen what you've been up to and I'm not pleased." Ranma said, crossing her hands beneath her breasts.

Slowly, Jamal made his way up against the wall as he regained his breath and balance. Once again turning to the infidel, he narrowed his eyes. "You insolent woman!" He screamed before lurching for her neck.

Stepping easily to the side, Ranma backhanded her supposed assailant, sending him crashing into the floor.

"Things are going to change around here. I'm sure that such a _smart_ and _strong_ man as yourself can come to an agreement with poor helpless little me. Perhaps a permanent vacation, hmmm?"

Ranma asked as she grabbed the man by his collar, lifting him off the ground and hanging him on a convenient coat hanger on the far wall.

The man was now shaking his feet helplessly in midair.

"There is no way that you will be able to escape. Someone will come and you will be shot where you stand." He managed to whisper through the pressure against his throat

"You think so?" Ranma replied as if the first time she had thought of it. Raising her right wrist she carefully examined her watch. "Let's see, right about…now."

BOOOM

Jamal struggled to turn his head; out the window in the distance, smoke billowed out from one of his weapon warehouses. He found all the soldiers in the courtyard scramble out of the compound towards the smoke.

"NO Yerrk…" The man slammed onto the floor clutching his neck where a bright bruise appeared along with the remains of the coat-rack.

"Oh, let them be. I've arranged for some quality time for us. You wouldn't want to ruin that now would you?" Ranma asked as she casually sat down in the president's cushy chair, leaning her head on one hand.

"Why are you doing this?" Jamal managed to stutter out through his abused throat.

"Why? Let me see, could it be the way you have been treating your people, the horrific deaths that have plagued innocent citizens. The torture you subjected them through, even children where not exempt from your tainted touch. Or maybe it's because of her." Ranma answered carefully, unfolding a photo that had kept her going through the increasingly intense training.

Jamal only glanced at the photo with the girl hanging onto the prison bars crying before going back to Ranma's cold glare. "So you are part of the resistance."

"Now don't go changing the subject."

Frantically Jamal jumped to the door, opening it, and gawked. The patrols he expected were littered across the hallway, he could only assume alive by the lack of blood.

"aaCK!" Jamal found himself tumbling through the air, before staring at the wall above.

"Tute tute, you're being a very naughty boy. You have to learn to listen. Perhaps you can take lessons during your nice long retirement? Maybe an isolated island where no one will be harmed by you again. Or could you possibly like playing with me? If you do, I'm just crazy about this new game I found called darts. Would you care to try?" Ranma asked, whipping out five knives before twirling them in her hands showing dexterity nearly unheard of as they formed an intricate pattern. Jamal's eyes warily watched the knives, keeping silent. Ranma's frown was the only warning before Jamal found two knives thud on either side of his face. His mouth fell open as he hesitantly reached up to find a trail of blood on each cheek.

"Yes, yes I agree. I'll leave. Just don't kill me," Jamal sobbed, kneeling before Ranma shaking in fear of the demoness that stood before him.

"Good boy, now if I don't hear of your retirement soon, I may have to come back to make good on that game. I'll leave you to imagine how my aim is with a blindfold," Ranma said smirking before leaving the man groveling on the ground. Walking down the corridor, Ranma was feeling very good about herself, she had completed her mission with no loss of life. All the patrols were taken care of, now she just had to sneak out of this place. Altena would be pleased.

BANG

Ranma crumbled to her knees, breath becoming sharp and raged. Time slowed to a crawl as all outside noise melt.

Thump thump

Looking down, Ranma found a small pool of blood on the ground.

Thump thump

Eyes traced the drops as they seemed to hover in mid-air where she found the source, a large gash in her arm.

THUMP, thump

Pain lanced from the wound, radiating in time with her heart.

THUMP, thump

Eyes turning, she found Jamal's fumbling fingers frantically reloading his reacquired firearm.

THUMP, THUMP

A primal geyser of hatred exploded in Ranma's mind as every image of this man's crimes flashed before her minds eye.

THUMP, THUMP

Standing, a flaming black aura enveloped Ranma as she reentered the room.

* * *

Ranma sat rocking in the corner, staring at her hands, hands the color of red. 'I…I killed. I killed and I enjoyed it. No! I protect, I don't kill people.' She had been sitting there for a long time staring at those tainted hands and what was left of the body laying in the opposite corner, at least the main portion.

BOOOM!

Ranma's eyes ticked towards the explosion before shakily looking at her wristwatch. 'I can't be here any longer. Someone will report the explosions soon.' So thinking, Ranma hesitantly stood, opening the window to leap out of the third story and hop over the wall with no one noticing the odd blurred form in the low light from the setting sun.

* * *

Beside herself, Ranma navigated the streets with the practiced ease of long hours of demographic memorization. 'What have I done? I've killed that's what. I swore an oath never to kill and on my first mission to save hundreds of thousands I bungle it…'

Booom

An explosion in the far distance distracted Ranma. 'That was the twentieth. There is only one more before they start to divert resources to finding the culprit. They will be out for blood once they discover their leader… I had better get to the rendezvous point before then.'

So thinking Ranma dashed along the back roads of the city. For the moment they were deserted, but she knew they would soon be overflowing with soldiers out for the culprit's head. If she wasn't gone by then, she would stick out like a sore thumb.

Extending her honed senses, Ranma tried to find anything that would prevent her from reaching her destination.

'What?' She stopped short, blinking.

Shaking her head, Ranma ducked into a side alley and another before leaping onto the roof of a nearby building. Her eyes darted around before hiding behind a stack of boxes, waiting patently. Her patience was soon rewarded when another shadow hoped from the far roof. It slowly moved along the edge, watching the streets closely as if trying to find something. As it reached the edge there was a small grunt of frustration.

"Now don't get too flustered, Chloe." Spinning around the figure was indeed revealed to be Chloe in her green cloak with a knife halfway thrown.

"Ranma, how did you…?" Chloe was rather upset, Ranma was the only one that could find her when on high alert and she still hadn't figured out how the redhead managed it.

Ranma walked out into the moonlight, carefully watching Chloe. "You know that's a secret. Now why are you here?"

Chloe blinked, Ranma wasn't supposed to know Chloe was following her much less why.

"I was just making sure you did what you were supposed to do." Chloe answered before looking out into the night.

"So Altena put you up to this?" Ranma's eyes narrowed, she would have hoped that Altena had more faith in her then that by now. 

"No, she didn't."

"Then why?"

"I just wanted to make sure that you were alright." Ranma let the silence draw out, trying to use her extra sense to find the truth behind the statement. The very shadow that made her stick out to Ranma made it difficult to divine Chloe's motives.

Her eyes widened when she found several small flashes of white penetrate the shifting darkness.

"I see, then we had better get out of here before they start to organize."

"Yes, Altena should have arranged for a quite rout of their remaining forces."

Ranma nodded before leaping to the next building followed by Chloe, each quickly disappearing into the night.

* * *

Author's end notes: Ranma has made his first kill yet has a long way to accepting his birthright of Noir.

Mereille and Kirika didn't make much of an appearance here, but will have more screen time in the next chapter.

The section regarding Jamal in no way reflects the author's views about women, politics, religion, or life in general. He's just a very bad person.

Someone brought up a good point about Ranma leaving with his guard down. The story was actually deliberately written this way. Ranma is by no means a professional and very naïve, he became over confident that Jamal agreed to his terms and all the soldiers were knocked out. From his perspective, all he had to do was walk out with a mission well completed.

The reason behind Jamal reloading the gun has been updated as all the bullets fell from the gun as he was disarmed. I've also updated to add more detail as to how Ranma went off the deep end. I'd like to thankHeeHaw for his suggestions for improvement regarding the story.

Any comments, questions, concerns, suggestions, corrections, or encouragements can be submitted either through review or emailed to me directly.

brindani


	8. A Weighted Soul

Author's notes: I was a little disappointed by the number of reviews for the previous chapter, but there isn't much that I can do about that. Anyway, I'd like to thank hee-haw for taking the time to point out several places that could use improvement. The previous chapter should look a little better now. Thanks goes out to idcallie and James Axelrad for hunting through this chapter for all my errors.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 8: A Weighted Soul

Mireille sat silently at her computer screen, idly tapping a finger against the velvet lining of her pool table.

Kirika watched Mireille anxiously as she watered the plant near the window. Mireille would often stare into the distance when something was troubling her. Kirika had to admit, recent events were very troubling.

"It appears the final payment for the job was deposited into our Swiss account," she mentioned absently. Kirika wasn't sure if she was talking to herself. In times like this, she found it best to allow Mireille to speak her mind.

"That means it was credited to Noir, but we weren't the ones to do it. After those bombs, there were so many soldiers we had a hard time just escaping. Still, the whole situation doesn't add up. Someone didn't just beat us to the target, the entire regime collapsed in a matter of days. Even with the unusually sudden interest from the UN, that shouldn't have been possible."

"Do you think it could be them?" Kirika asked quietly, shifting the pot around so that each side would receive equal shares of water.

"There is nothing to link any of this to them directly, but I have a feeling that they're connected." Mireille frowned as the puzzle refused to reveal its secrets. Standing, she retrieved a bottle of orange juice from the refrigerator. Twisting off the lid, Mireille took a long sip before sitting down, setting the bottle beside her. "Whoever assassinated the self-appointed president was not only good, they were very good. They planted bombs all over the city, strategically placed so the enemy could not afford to ignore them. That distracted a large portion of the main army. They then slipped past the entrenched elite patrols, recently bolstered by rumors of the assassination attempt, and violently killed the leader, after roughing him up for well over twenty minutes.

Their President was no pushover. There was a reason we planned to strike after dark aside for the cover it offered. Before he staged the takeover, he had been the General of the ground forces, decorated for killing a hundred confirmed enemies during their last skirmish. Yet with all his skill, my sources indicate a very one-sided conflict.

After all that, only an anonymous message was left through obscure channels, attributing the act to Noir. That was the only evidence to link the whole situation to us. Truly, this new person puts everyone we have met so far to shame."

Beep

Mireille stopped her incessant tapping, turning to the computer. Clicking through several screens, her eyes took on an appraising look as they scanned through a new email.

"Looks like one of my contacts found an old contract that may hold a clue about our enemy. It appears to be in the possession of the Mafia currently." Mireille started to tap her fingers together speculatively as Kirika finished watering the plant and moved to look over Mireille's shoulder. "Hmmm, it looks like that job for a hit on the Mafia leader may have more value than I first thought."

* * *

Glazed eyes swept across the terrain as Ranma left the limousine. Chloe stood behind, carefully watching her companion. She found it odd. Ranma held no shortage of confidence in his abilities. When he proved he could do something correctly, shutting him up was nearly impossible. Yet, once he completed a very important mission, he had not said so much as 'I told you so'.

He locked himself into his hotel room that first night. The shower turned on before she left for her own room. When she returned the next morning, the shower was still on and Ranma's hands were bright pink, mumbling something about the blood wouldn't come off. That was the only thing she had heard him say since then; mostly mumbled under his breath.

It frustrated Chloe to no end. She prided herself on understanding people. From the signs, she knew that Ranma had fought and likely killed them with the blood she noticed on his hands. She knew this had to be the cause of his angst yet it didn't make sense. Killing was their way of life. Chloe shook her head, giving up on understanding Ranma as they journeyed back.

It was oddly nostalgic for Chloe as this was the exact path they had taken when she first brought Ranma to Altena. Ranma had undergone quite a few changes since that time. His swordsmanship had improved by leaps and bounds until his strength and speed allowed him to overwhelm her seven times out of ten. Not to be outdone, Chloe had poured herself into training harder, increasing her own speed, endurance, and strength preventing Ranma from completely overtaking her.

Chloe lost her concentration as she almost ran into Ranma. Abruptly stopping several inches behind him, Chloe stuck her head around him to find what had caused the sudden stop. She smiled when she spotted Altena a dozen paces away, her warm smile welcoming them from their long journey.

Chloe smiled, leaving her troubled thoughts behind as she passed by Ranma, running into Altena's welcoming embrace.

"I've missed you, my Chloe," Altena whispered into her ear.

"I've missed you too." Chloe responded, a content smile appearing.

They held each other for several tender minutes before Altena's eyes reopened, focusing solely on Ranma. She noticed his face was conflicted, ranging from desire to self-loathing to neutral. Standing, she nudged Chloe to disengage. Chloe did so reluctantly, turning a questioning gaze to Altena.

She found Altena staring past her. Following the stare, she found Ranma watching them with a deep seated need that she had felt all too often during her longer assignments.

"Why don't you go ahead and start dinner, Chloe?"

Hesitantly, Chloe nodded her head, restraining herself from making a comment about it being Ranma's turn to cook. Light footsteps grew softer as she entered the ancient structure. Her departure left the two staring at each other, Altena's warm gaze meeting Ranma's disheartened one.

After nearly a minute, Altena took the initiative, lightly traversing the distance between them, halting a few feet in front of Ranma, arms opened wide.

Ranma took a hesitant step forward, and then another, finally allowing gravity to complete the task. Altena barely caught the sudden weight, collapsing to her knees. Ranma grasped her with incredible strength as if holding onto a lifeline. No tears were shed, only a deep tremble he could not contain.

"There there, young one," Altena cooed to the distraught teenager. "You have done an excellent job; there is no need to be sad."

Ranma pulled back, looking up into the older woman's eyes. "No, I didn't. I botched the whole thing. No one was supposed to die. The President was suppose to leave the country, never to be heard from again, but now… now… he's dead." Ranma finished, almost child-like in his anguish.

Altena's concerned gaze fell back on Ranma, gently guiding him into their mutual embrace. Slowly, Altena ran her fingers through Ranma's hair. It helped to calm him, relieving the incessant shaking. They remained this way for a long time, as the sun began to make its way over the horizon, before Altena spoke once more.

"Ranma, sometimes people who cause others pain will not listen. They are cowardly, hiding behind soldiers to protect themselves from their insecurities. They desire power and allow it to corrupt them, turning promising leaders into sadistic dictators. They never want to let go of what they have taken, thinking everything it theirs by right. If they are not stopped, they can cause terrible suffering, as you have recently seen.

Sometimes it is possible to remove them peacefully; more often force is the only way to displace them. You did what had to be done and no one will blame you for it." Altena finished, releasing Ranma, gently encouraging him to stand. "Now come, there is something I wish to show you." Ranma hesitantly left the safety of their embrace offered freely by this woman he hardly knew.

Together they walked back into the manor. Carefully examining the worn structure, Ranma realized that over the past two weeks, this place had become like a second home. It held so many memories of Altena's mother-like essence as well as Chloe's often aloof presence. Each of the manor's many twists and turns, explored a thousand times over. At least the main floor that is. He was unsure as to why, but Altena always stopped him before he could explore the lower levels of the structure.

Ranma allowed Altena to guide him through the corridors without resistance, steering him to her personal office. She gently led him to a seat, before sitting opposite of him.

Ranma found the situation oddly reminiscent of their first meeting as this was the same room, with an identical manila folder on the table.

Altena smiled at Ranma as she settled into her seat. "Despite what you think, you have done a wonderful job." Ranma's eyes lowered, denying the praise. He was startled when the folder pushed into his view.

"Go ahead, open it." Altena encouraged with a small nod.

Ranma hesitantly lifted a hand, flipping the folder open. Inside he found a pile of pictures. His eyes widened as they examined the top photo. It featured a large group of soldiers, the band on their arm marking them as part of Jamal's army. Each held their hands over their heads as twice their number in UN soldiers held guns to their backs, marched them into a waiting transport van. Uncovering the next, he found another UN soldier gently cleaning a young child's cuts, as the mother sat close by with a relieved smile.

The next was of a food dispensary, where a child who was literally skin and bones, devoured the army food rations, a large pile of wrappers scattered around him. Examining photo after photo, Ranma found that each held renewed hope where it once was devoid.

A small smile appeared on Ranma's face as he finished viewing the pile. Closing the folder, Ranma, his head propped by his hands, realizing what he had done was unforgivable, and yet… so many people now had expressions of relief; a chance to live their lives without terror. His attention returned to Altena when she cleared her throat.

"There is one more that I wanted to give to you personally," Altena whispered, revealed another photo, taking great care in handling it.

Curious, Ranma took the photo, blinking as he recognized someone within. Quickly, Ranma fished through his own pockets with his good arm, removing a long held picture of a girl being tortured behind bars, before examining the one he had just received. His eyes widened as they took in the details. In it, the same little girl leapt through the air, her parents rushing forward, arms open wide. The little girl's smile, larger than any Ranma had seen before, spread across her face with small sparkles that could only have been tears.

Ranma wiped his own eyes.

"Sometimes what we do is worth it, even at the cost of human lives. You have saved a country and you have mine and every one of its citizens' deepest gratitude." Altena's smile wavered slightly before continuing "Ranma, there are other people that could use your help, other countries in dire need. Would you consider staying with us and helping those people as well?" Altena asked.

Ranma frowned, turning his head away. "As a girl?" He asked knowing the answer.

"It would be the best way." Altena affirmed.

Ranma shifted back and forth, his eyes troubled. It wasn't just staying a girl that bothered him. From everything Altena had said, if he remained he would kill again. Even thought this may help so many people, he wasn't sure he could take the gnawing taint he felt curled around his stomach. It became nearly unbearable when he looked at his raw pink hands. No matter how much or how hard he scrubbed, he felt it there, even now, the blood of the man he had killed.

Eventually Altena interrupted his thoughts. "Why don't you think about it, Ranma? You do not have to answer immediately. You could return home. Take some time to relax, and visit with friends and family. I'm in no hurry, spend as much time as you need to consider my offer."

Ranma nodded, carefully tucking both pictures safely into his pocket.

"I'll arrange for a flight tomorrow morning."

"Thank you… for everything, Altena." Ranma said, leaving the room to pack the few belongings he had accumulated during his short stay.

Altena serenely watched him leave. "No Ranma, thank you." Standing, she exited the room herself, traveling the corridors that had been her home for years she had lost count of. Almost be instinct she went into a room where she liked to think. It was a simple room with a table and chair. On the table lay a game of chess. Altena sat down considering the game with a smile. Slowly, she reached out, moving a pawn one space closer to the opposite side of the board. "Only two more spaces, my young sapling."

* * *

In a luxurious room, far removed from the manor, brooded three middle-aged men each. Each sat in an elaborately carved chair, with a glass of exotic wine, all three wore a ring with the symbol of the Soldats. Shadows flickered around the dark room, cast by the blazing fire locked within the large fireplace before them. Each seemingly lost in thought as they stared into the fire, captivated by the dancing flames. At least until one broached the subject that plagued their collective thoughts.

"Altena has gone too far."

The others glanced towards the large man who had spoken, nodding in consent.

"What she is trying to do breaks all tradition. Noir represents the sacred hands of the Soldats, it holds no place for a man."

"She says that he has a curse that changes him into a woman."

"We've all seen the video, there was no indication it was altered. Still I find it disconcerting. Such a dramatic change to the body with the simply application of water indicates something far beyond known science."

"Still, I find it is fortuitous that the male child the old high priestess proclaimed a candidate for Noir would receive this specific curse."

"We are losing sight of what is important here. Cursed to become a girl or selected for Noir by a deranged old woman, he was still born a male, which precludes him from Noir."

"In that we are in agreement, but what can be done? This unusual curse allows Altena to act on her foolish designs."

"Yes it does… it also allows us to act as well."

"What do you mean?"

"If this Ranma is to be a candidate for Noir, then he must be tested as the others."

"But Altena said he is not ready for the trials, he was injured after his last mission."

"Exactly…" devilish smiles appeared all around.

* * *

Ranma took a deep breath of air; his first since arriving in Tokyo. It felt… nice to be home. He was certain that chaos awaited him ahead and yet he almost felt like it wouldn't matter. He had saved thousands and not even idiots like Kuno or Mouse could hamper his soaring spirits now. The very air itself felt charged with his anticipation.

Flexing his right arm, the cast that hampered his movements disintegrated, pieces fluttering to the ground. Moving his arm around, Ranma smiled as all signs of damage had completely disappeared.

Hopping to the nearest roof, Ranma never noticed another familiar figure departing from a different flight.

* * *

Chloe stretched her arms and legs after the long trip before shifting her belongings to her back. 'This doesn't make sense. Ranma is to become apart of Noir and yet Altena allows him to simply leave. Now she wants me to watch him with explicit instructions not to be seen or intervene, no matter the circumstances.'

Shaking her head, Chloe walked slowly towards the Tendo dojo. She still had not figured out how Ranma could detect her, but she knew whatever his odd power, it did not extend beyond a hundred meters.

It was true she wouldn't be very effective from such a distance, but given her orders, it was rather a moot point.

* * *

Ranma felt exhilarated as he blazed across the roof tops at high speed. It had been far too long since he felt the wind across his face like this. The city was a veritable highway at his feet, leading to any destination he desired. Already the Tendo compound was coming into view. At the sight of its familiar roof, Ranma's heart felt lighter than it had since he began this long journey.

With a final leap, Ranma landed into the front yard, dusting himself off before walking to the door. His hand hovered above the doorknob. He had left rather suddenly. He didn't quite feel comfortable just barging in as if he had been gone for the afternoon. Shaking his head, he knocked solidly on the door.

"Coming" Ranma heard from within. It felt nice to hear a familiar voice.

After several moments, the door opened, revealing the owner of that soothing tone; Kasumi wearing a conservative housedress with a lovely rose motif.

"Oh, Ranma. It has been so long. How was your trip?" Kasumi asked pleasantly, gesturing for him to enter.

"It was quite the experience, Kasumi. I'm very glad to be home." Ranma answered, walking past her.

"That's nice. You'll have to tell everyone about your journey when they return." Kasumi responded, closing the door behind Ranma as he entered the main room.

"Where is everyone? I thought they would be back by now." Ranma asked looking around.

"Akane should be returning from an after-school activity shortly, Father went to purchase some cigarettes and Nabiki is attending Tokyo-U now." Kasumi answered walking past him straight to the kitchen to retrieve some refreshments.

Ranma blinked. Something about that explanation didn't sound right. He waited semi- patiently until Kasumi returned with a plate of cookies and tea. She lightly placed both items onto the table in front of Ranma, taking a seat herself.

"Uhh, when did Nabiki get into Tokyo-U? For that matter, when did she graduate from highschool?" Ranma asked as he took a bite from one of Kasumi's delectable peanut butter cookies.

"It was very odd, but it appears Nabiki filled out some test information online. The school contacted her about a week and a half ago, saying her scores qualified her to attend. They invited her to a private entrance examination at the university. She did so well, the school board allowed her to skip her last few years of high school. They also offered her a full scholarship. It was all most exciting." Kasumi explained with a pleasant smile.

Ranma frowned for a moment before shaking his head. "That was very nice for her. So I'm guessing she's staying in one of the dormitories?"

"Why yes, from the sounds of it, she has an excellent roommate that has helped her learn the campus very quickly. We receive letters almost every other day about how she is doing." Kasumi answered, daintily nibbling on one of her own cookies.

"These are excellent cookies, Kasumi." Ranma commented as he removed another from the plate.

Kasumi blinked before smiling again. "Why thank you, Ranma, I made them from a new recipe I've been working on."

"You certainly have outdone yourself this time. I haven't had a cookie nearly this tasty since… actually since the last time I had one of yours." Ranma said, giving Kasumi a warm smile of appreciation.

Kasumi blushed, looking down at the table. "Thank you."

"Kasumi, Dad, I'm home," echoed a voice from the front door. "Do we have guests? There's an extra pair of shoes here." Akane stopped cold as she entered the family room.

"Ranma…" she whispered, eyes suddenly filled with confusion, hurt, and pain. He had left her so quickly leaving no word about what was happening. She was so worried about the idiot. He might have been hurt and she would never have known. But did he care?! 'No!' Akane's mixed emotions spun around her leading to anger.

"Hi Akane, it's nice to see you again." Ranma politely greeted. Akane's aura shimmered a brilliant red.

"Ranma, how could you do that you jerk!" Rushing forward, Akane, tears in her eyes, threw a punch with all her might. In the blink of an eye, Ranma stood, grabbed her overextended arm and threw Akane against the far wall. She landed with a loud thump. Two knives appeared at either side of her head, each with a dull thud, mere inches from her face.

"I am sorry for the display of violence, but I didn't have a chance to warn her not to attack." Ranma bowed low to Kasumi before sitting back down.

"Oh my," Kasumi gasped, placing a hand to her mouth as Ranma's odd behavior became more apparent. "You certainly have changed Ranma."

Ranma blinked several times himself, thinking about Kasumi's comment. "Yes, I guess I have. My recent sensei was very big on manners."

"I… see. Will she be alright?" Kasumi asked indicating the clump once known as Akane who appeared to have small swirls in her eyes.

"She should be fine momentarily. I restrained myself as much as I possible could."

"Why did you do that?" Kasumi asked.

"Kasumi, I left to save people. I trained hard to respond to attack without thinking, so that when I went into hostile territory, I would be able to handle anything. Besides, I was getting tired of being hit."

"No, I mean, Akane is a girl. You've always been against fighting girls," her eyes clearly uncertain about this particular change.

Ranma stared at Kasumi for a moment before realization dawned on him. "I've seen plenty of girls that can bend iron with their bare hands and fight with incredible ferocity. I recently found one that could not only fight, but would literally skin me alive if I didn't fight her with all my might. I just sorta got used to fighting back when it came to girls."

"I see." Kasumi answered weakly.

"Anyway…" Ranma's thoughts spiraled away from the concentration. His senses were set to trip if he felt anything hostile. Every single one of those senses just tripped. 'Damn, there's something out there; something that wants me dead. And they're close.' Ranma thought to himself as his gaze seemed to look past the walls out into the front street.

* * *

In front of the Tendo household stood seven men, all dressed in sharp black suits with sunglasses. Inconspicuously drawing their guns, they turned towards the house that held their unsuspecting target.

"Remember our target is injured. It should be an easy kill, but don't let your guard down. We can not afford to underestimate our enemy. We also have orders to not harm the family, however, mistakes… do happen." The large leader grinned sadistically before walking forward.

* * *

Author's end notes: I can feel the outrage now. Ranma coming close to tears!? Ranma needing a hug?! Sacrilege! My excuse? Ranma has breached his code of honor, has taken a man's life with blood literally on his hands. I can only imagine how traumatic such an experience would be. I would think that even Ranma would be allowed such small consolations especially as Altena is the only one to see.

Nabiki's sudden enrollment into Tokyo-u probably appeared abrupt as well. There is a reason behind it and I'm sure people have ideas already, but it will be explained later.


	9. The Attack

Author's notes: I've started really working on this particular fic. Unfortunately I've written more during the weekends then I've been able to edit. That means I have four chapters complete and another four unedited. The ones that are complete are pending review by my other prereader. I'd like to thank both prereaders, idcallie and James Axelrad, for scanning through and spotting many of my errors. I'd also like to thank HeeHaw for taking the time to point out some missing elements.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 9: The Attack

Ranma's eyes widened, those people wanted him dead. They wanted him dead and he stood in the Tendo house… Ranma's head whipped around, he trembled when his gaze spotted Kasumi stooped over Akane's prone form still resting against the wall. After checking on her sister Kasumi turned back to find Ranma's wide eyes watching them in fear.

"Ranma, are you alright? You stopped in the middle of your sentence." Kasumi asked, concerned. Ranma didn't fear many things and as there were no cats around, it must be pretty bad.

'This is not good.' Ranma thought, fiercely shaking himself. 'I've got to pull it together. If I don't they will be hurt.'

"Kasumi, there isn't time to explain, but both you and Akane are in danger. I need you to go upstairs with Akane, lock yourselves in your room and hide in the closet. I'll come for you when it's safe, ok?" Ranma asked gently, his concerned filled eyes locked with Kasumi's.

Kasumi's eyes widened in confusion. 'All of Ranma's little friends like to play rough. She knew that. But Ranma had never become this upset over one of them.' Her eyes widened further in fear. 'Whoever's coming is not one of Ranma's friends, satisfied by a little battle with some property damage. They might even try…' Kasumi started to shake.

When she didn't immediately move, Ranma's cool eyes met hers with an intensity she had never seen before. "Please, Kasumi, we have very little time." He said quietly, almost pleadingly.

Kasumi firmed her resolve. She had to be strong for Ranma, or the consequences... Awkwardly, she helped a teetering Akane stumble her way up the stairs as fast as she could.

'Please make it through this alright, Ranma' Kasumi thought as she climbed the stairs, loosing sight of Ranma.

Once Kasumi left his view, Ranma ducked into the kitchen, hastily flipping the facet on, splashing himself with cold water before jumping above the cupboards.

BANG.

The door flew open, revealing a large man in sunglasses lowering his outstretched foot. Carefully, the man entered the room, quickly shifting his gun right and then left, examining the interior of the house.

He gestured silently with his left hand. Three more men ran in, securing all angles around the room. Moments later, three more men burst through the back door.

The leader nodded his head. At his signal, the others broke up into groups of two, efficiently moving through their assigned rooms.

Ranma watched from her vantage as they began to search each room. She had to be very careful. If they started searching upstairs, they may find Kasumi and Akane. She could not let that happen.

Ranma ducked a little further back as two men entered the kitchen, guns drawn as they examined the room with sharp eyes. They both looked identical to Ranma, wearing shades and an old fashioned bowler's cap with a matching black suit.

The one on the right nodded his head. Ranma kept a sharp eye out for any opportunity. The left man opened the pantry, quickly moving in to make sure no one was hiding there. While his attention was diverted, Ranma made her move. With a lightning fast chop, the man waiting fell to the ground, clutching his throat before unconsciousness claimed him. Hearing the thud, the other exited, his eyes scanning the room before their brows rose as he caught sight of his downed partner.

Hastily, he raised his gun, wearily scanning for the culprit. Swinging around, his vision filled with a large fist. He joined his colleague on the ground, out cold.

'Two down, five to go. Now where are the other sleazebags?' Ranma thought before fully extending her senses. 'Damn, they've already searched the ground floor and are making their way upstairs. I can't let them get to Kasumi's room!' Ranma rushed out of the room. Down the hallway, two men were covering the stairs, guns at the ready.

Thunk, Thunk

"Ahhh!…" two knives slashed each of their hands, knocking both guns away. Their vision flashed before them, cutting off their scream as they crumpled before the steps.

'Four down, three to go.' Ranma thought to herself as she stood from her crouch.

Tink, Tink

Ranma's heart nearly stopped. 'Those gun shots came from upstairs!' Ranma leapt up the stairs, slamming one of the suited men against the railing.

Eyes franticly scanning the upper floor, the last two men were spotted walking through Kasumi's bedroom door, the knob laying to the side. She hastily jumped in, catching the nearest figure off guard with a flying kick. 'One more kick and I'll have the last.' Her brief relief shattered as her senses blared. Ranma rolled to the side, barely missing the business end of a bullet.

Crouching on the bed, Ranma examined the last man standing with senses on high alert. He was tall and burly, muscles clearly outlined by his suit. His bald head followed Ranma's movements easily, his gun moving just as quickly.

NOW!

Ranma leapt away, a bullet silently disintegrating the pillow behind her, another lancing through the wall.

Ranma crouched on the floor, wishing she had brought more knives. The four Chloe had given her as a memento were not enough. 'Who are these people? Leftovers from Jamal's men maybe?' With his freshly pressed black suit, this man was nothing like the soldiers she had dealt with before. He had to be a professional assassin. Maybe some remnant of the regime sent professionals to bump her off? Still that didn't explain how they not only knew who she was but where to find her. The whole situation stunk like Genma's wet socks after a fourteen hour training session.

These thoughts flashed through Ranma's mind in a fraction of second as the face off continued. This man was very good; though not nearly as fast as Ranma. Unfortunately, her opponent had a gun, keeping Ranma out of close combat. She could use a ki blast, but the guy was way too close to the closet, one miscalculation could end up hurting that closet's precious cargo. She didn't like it, but she would have to wait for the man to run out of bullets.

BOOM

The closet door exploded open as a furious Akane ran out, fists at the ready. "How dare you attack my family!" She screamed, flying towards the black suited man. Her eyes widened in shock as she realized her assailant had a gun. Ranma gasped as that very gun swung towards Akane.

"No!" Ranma reacted as fast as she could, zipping across the room with all her might. She wasn't fast enough.

Tink.

Akane fell to the ground clutching her side. The assassin slammed against the wall like a ragdoll by a savage roundhouse to the neck.

Ranma rushed to Akane's side, ripping away her shirt to find the wound below, blood spreading out fast.

Akane's eyes noted his actions, her shocked mind forming a single word before fainting "pervert…" Checking her back, Ranma sighed, the bullet hadn't hit any major organ.

Her eyes scrunched. "Not good, the blood keeps pouring out." Hastily, Ranma took Akane's torn school shirt and wrapped it around her wound, helping to stanch the blood flow.

"OH MY!" A quivering Kasumi exclaimed as she crawled out of the closet to find her sister lying in a growing pool of her own blood.

Ranma spared her shocked expression a brief moment.

"KASUMI!" the scream shook her, drawing her frighten eyes to Ranma. "Akane needs help now. You need to call an ambulance immediately. Do you understand me?" Ranma asked as calmly as possible though her own heart raced wildly.

Though panicking, Kasumi squeezed her eyes shut, nodding her head once before sprinting out of the room.

Kasumi gone, Ranma continued to try and staunch the rapidly spreading blood.

"Don't die on me you stupid uncute tomboy. You can't just leave it like this. Not like this." Ranma cried, faint tears appeared in her eyes as she watched the color drain from her fiancée's cheeks.

* * *

Ranma's watched dejectedly as a doctor and several nurses rushed Akane's bed through the emergency door, the light flickering on moments later. Kasumi stood next to the now male Ranma, her eyes tearing as she lost sight of her baby sister.

Ranma turned to Kasumi. She looked exhausted, twin trails of moisture rolling down her cheeks accompanied by an occasional hiccup. Gently taking her hand, Ranma led her quivering body to a nearby chair. Following Ranma's guidance, Kasumi sat in the seat before covering her face in an attempt to muffle her sobs.

"Kasumi?" Ranma asked hesitantly taking a seat next to the distraught girl.

Ranma nearly fell off his chair as Kasumi tumbled into him, tears soaking his shirt. Stunned, Ranma sat immobile; a girl had just latched onto him. His body tensed, ready to leap away at a moments notice. His hesitation caused Kasumi to tighten her grip.

"Please Ranma… please hold me." She whimpered, her streaming eyes gazing up into his.

His face firmed, he could not run away, Kasumi needed him now. Needed him more then she had ever needed him. Agonizingly slow, he wrapped his arms around the distraught girl, slowly rubbing Kasumi's back.

"Thank you." She hiccupped, voice muffled as it returned to his shirt.

"It's alright, Kasumi. Akane will be just fine. You'll see. She's too stubborn to do anything else. As soon as the doctor lets us in, you'll see for yourself. She'll be back to her tomboy self in no time; burnt cooking and all." Ranma continued his stream of reassurance. Gradually, Kasumi's tears receded; her breathing became more even, her grip loosing some of its edge.

A soft snore caught Ranma's attention. Shifting his head, he found Kasumi had fallen asleep, her face ragged with tear stains. He gently unwrapped her arms, placing them into her lap. Kasumi resisted the movement; seeking the warmth suddenly denied her. Only reluctantly did she settle down.

Ranma gazed down on Kasumi tenderly. She had been like a big sister to him, tending his wounds and silently giving him support, no matter how much chaos flooded his life. In a thousand years, he doubted he would ever be able to repay the debt he owed her.

Standing, Ranma found a petite nurse with short brown hair walking down the corridor. She was frantically flipping back and forth through several charts attached to her clipboard.

"Nurse?" Ranma asked tapping her shoulder.

She jumped at the unexpected touch. Flinging her clipboard away to grip her thundering chest, she spun around, raising a hand to give whoever had scared her, a serious piece of her mind. Her rebuke died on her lips as her gaze fell into the deepest blue eyes she had ever seen.

"Yes?" she asked, her fright completely forgotten. 'I just found my dream man,' she thought, her feet feeling as if they were floating on air.

"Could I have a blanket and pillow for my companion?" Ranma asked, gesturing behind him to the emotionally exhausted girl sitting there.

The nurse felt her heart crumble as she took in the young woman. Ragged or not she was stunning! 'Damn, he's already taken. Why, oh why are all the good looking ones always taken!?' She thought, silently bemoaning the heavens. Before he could turn back, she forced a strained professional smile into place.

"Certainly, I'll get those for you." She said, woodenly moving down the hall, forgetting completely about the chart she had left laying against the far wall.

Ranma scratched his head as he watched the nurse's odd reaction. Shrugging his shoulders, he dismissed it. There were far more important things to worry about than the antics of a nurse.

Ranma regarded Kasumi's sleeping form. Even in sleep, her brows drew down, shivering as she tried to reach out, mumbling Akane's name.

He frowned as he watched her troubled sleep. 'Stupid Akane, she should have let me handle it. Like always, she charged head-first into a situation she knew nothing about. Only this time, she paid a terrible price.' Ranma shook his head forcibly. 'No, it's not her fault. She just wanted to protect her family. I should have been faster, should have taken him down before he had the chance to shoot. Now it's too late. Akane has been hurt.' Ranma thought, his eyes drifting to the door labeled emergency room. 'There was so much blood, I'm not sure she will make it.' Ranma worried silently.

"Sir?" Ranma jumped as he found the attractive nurse offering a blanket and pillow.

"Oh, thank you," Ranma said absently, taking the items from her. "Do you happen to know how it is going in there?" Ranma asked, gesturing to the emergency room.

The nurse looked back at the indicated room before shaking her head. "I'm sorry sir; I'm not assigned to this emergency room. If you wait a little longer, someone should be out with more information." The nurse answered, before bowing and reluctantly returning to her duties. 'Another prospect lost, when will it be my turn?' she thought with a sorrowful pout.

Ranma sighed, lightly spreading the blanket over Kasumi, resting her head against the pillow. His worry etched face lightened as she pulled the blanket to herself, a small smile returning as she snuggled against its warmth.

"Ranma," she mumbled lightly.

Shaking his head, Ranma was about to sit when he spotted someone familiar further down the hall. Looking confused and worried, Soun Tendo was examining a slip of paper, comparing it to the door number in front of him. 'Guess it's time to face the music.' Ranma thought darkly.

"Mr. Tendo, over here." Ranma called out, waving. Soun turned to face the person calling him. He blinked when he found Ranma standing next to his eldest daughter's sleeping form.

Soun nodded, making his way over. Soun raised his arms as he drew closer. Ranma wanted to bring his own up to defend against the coming onslaught. He forced them down. He deserved everything that Soun gave him and so much more for his negligence. Ranma would take responsibility for failing. At the last moment he squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the beating of his life. To his surprise, Ranma felt the older man's arms encircle him. The pig-tailed boy opened his eyes wide when he realized he was being hugged.

"Thank you, Ranma."

Of all the reactions that certainly was one of the last on the list he expected. "For what, Mr. Tendo?" he asked cautiously.

Releasing Ranma, Soun stepped back regarding the young man's troubled features. "For saving my daughters. I spoke with the detective on my way up. He told me everything. If you had not been there, both Kasumi and Akane would have been killed."

Ranma looked down, 'if I hadn't been there, those men would never have come in the first place. The girls wouldn't have needed protection.'

"How is she doing?" Ranma found Soun in front of the emergency room; his hand hovering above it, straining against his desire to burst in to check on his beloved youngest daughter.

"They haven't come out yet. She lost a lot of blood, but I think she'll be alright." Ranma answered hopefully, stepping next to the older man.

Soun nodded his head, reluctantly dropping his hand. Ranma was surprised that Soun had not fallen into tears. In fact, there was not a shimmer of emotion as he faced the door.

"I couldn't bear to lose the other." Soun whispered to himself, just barely loud enough for Ranma to hear.

Ranma blinked. 'Lose the other? What is he talking about?"

"What do you mean?" Ranma asked. Soun jerked as he looked at Ranma, blinking as if surprised to find him standing there. His surprise gave way to a probing stare as if trying to gauge him.

Ranma must have passed the impromptu examination as Soun nodded, glancing at Kasumi sleeping form before speaking again.

"I want your word as a martial artist that what I'm about to share with you does not go beyond us," Soun asked, lightly placing a hand on Ranma's shoulder, pinning him with a penetrating gaze.

Ranma blinked again. Soun had never asked for such a promise. Whatever he had to say must be very important. Hesitantly, Ranma nodded his head.

"I promise as a martial artist that what we discuss will not go beyond the two of us without your permission." Ranma returned with a gaze just as intense as Soun's.

Soun studied Ranma's somber stance, taking in the slight change of wording. Nodding once, Sound released his hold, turning back to the emergency room door.

"It happened a long time ago, when my wife was pregnant with Akane. Her labor was very long and hard, but after twenty-eight hours, we were blessed with twins." Ranma's eyes widened. Soun raised a hand, forestalling any possible interruption.

Soun continued once he was certain Ranma would keep his peace. "We were so happy. Though not identical, we had two new beautiful baby girls. We stared at them for hours watching their peaceful faces as they slept in Kimoko's arms." Ranma had never seen Soun's face so tranquil, eyes softening as if he saw the babies before him.

Ranma was surprised when the calm shattered, replaced by a storm or emotions. Trembling Soun continued. "Then the old woman appeared. Until that day, I had never seen someone so wrinkled and shriveled. Five burly guards flanking her hobbling form. I was alarmed at first. When they didn't enter the room with her, I was naively reassured that she must be an important old friend of Kimoko.

How wrong I was. The old woman came to Kimoko first giving her an odd smile. Kimoko drew into herself shivering. I rushed to Kimoko's bedside desperate to find out what happened. It was then the old woman examined our twin daughters.

I will never forget what happened next. She picked up one of our dear girls, holding her up high and proclaimed to the entire world that she was to be a candidate for Noir.

It startled me away from Kimoko. A crazy woman held my child. I moved to take my child back, protect her from the deranged eyes that stared up at her." Soun's eyes clouded his hands instinctively reaching out as if to retrieve the phantom child in his vision. His arm's fell reluctantly. "I never made it. The five men penned me to the floor before I could react." Soun's voice quivered as his fist became white with strain. "Everything I ever learned under the Master, all useless to help me when I truly needed it. No matter how I struggled, I could not move. I was left reaching with one arm. The old woman's cackling haunts me to this day as she moved towards the door.

I thought things could be no worse. I was wrong. Despite a long hard labor, my brave Kimoko would have none of it. She tried so hard, pushing herself from the bed. She crawled on the floor reaching her own hands out, not even the strength to stand, tried to stop the old woman and… and the old woman shot her." Tears leaked from the older man's eyes as haunting memories pressed passed their long sealed vault.

"She wasn't a threat. She could barely crawl. Frightened beyond all reason she could have done nothing to hurt her and yet the old woman shot her with a smile on her face.

Watching my wife bleed, the old woman, cradled my child in her arms. She said our family had fulfilled our obligation and would be rewarded. I was knocked out soon after." Soun finished his eyes downcast, emotionally drained after telling of that fateful day.

"What about your wife?" Ranma asked, intent upon the story.

"Her wound wasn't fatal. When I came to, she was already being treated and was stabilized. Fate had one more disaster to throw at us, however. The wound complicated her recovery from her prolonged labor, weakening her immune system drastically."

"So that is how…"

"Yes, years later, her weakened immune system couldn't take the constant strain. She contracted a fatal illness and died shortly after." Sound said, his words emotionless yet quivered as he spoke them.

"But why didn't you tell your children?" Ranma asked unconsciously putting an arm around Soun to support him. A leaf in the wind was more sturdy then Soun.

"While in the hospital, we made a pact that our children would not have to face the realization that a sister they would never know was out there somewhere. We thought it best that at least they would not have to suffer with that knowledge."

"And the promise from the old woman?"

"They kept it."

"But how?"

"Whoever these Soldats are, they're well connected. Bills for the house would mysteriously be paid with no trace where the money came from, but we knew.

Life only became worse after Kimoko died. She was my only support after losing my child. When she passed away, my grief overtook me and I was unable to continue. To this day, I curse myself and my unresponsive body, but could force neither to help my waning family.

The old woman must have continued to help because we miraculously made it through many desperate times, with extra money appearing when we needed it. Later I found that Nabiki had taken over the reins of the household finances. Her ledgers told everything; scams, blackmail, and extortion. I found something odd, however, they were making far more money than a little girl could ever realistically achieve on her own."

Soun turned to Ranma, his shimmering eyes telling more than a waterfall of tears ever could.

"I know I was not there for my family. I could not protect Akane's sister. I can only pray that she is still out there, loved and cared for. I pray for this every night. To lose another… I could not bear it." Soun finished moving an arm to his eyes.

Ranma nodded solemnly just as a doctor exited the emergency room.

The bald doctor stood for a moment, bags under his eyes as he examined the two men. Finally, he bowed slightly to Soun.

"I take it you are the patient's father?" He asked.

"Yes, I'm Soun Tendo. Is my baby going to be alright?" Soun asked, new worry filling his eyes.

The doctor rubbed his weary eyes. "The answer to that is mixed." Soun's face began to crumple, but stopped when the doctor raised a finger. "She lost quite a bit of blood, and wouldn't have made it if she had not received prompt attention. Right now, however, she needs blood, and lots of it to stabilize her condition.

I'm afraid that she has blood type O+, which is currently in short supply. Does anyone in the family or perhaps a friend willing to donate with a blood-type of O+ or O-?" The doctor asked warily.

Ranma shook his head. "I'm AB," Ranma said silently, wishing he was able to help.

The doctor frowned before turning to Soun. The man thought for a moment before nodding his head.

"I'm O+ but I'm afraid Kasumi takes after her mother as B+."

"I was hoping there would be more then one person with the correct blood type, but we'll have to work with what we have. Would you be willing to donate blood for your daughter?" The doctor asked the rhetorical question required by law.

"Of course, of course." Soun answered as he followed after the doctor into the emergency room; leaving Ranma to tend to Kasumi.

* * *

In the hospital wing of a maximum security detention center sat a guard. He was bored out of his mind guarding the seven men shackled to their bed laying unconscious from severe head trauma. Truly, the whole situation made him sick to his stomach. An innocent family attacked in broad daylight by some Yakuza thugs. At least that is what he figured. There wasn't any identification on them, but who else would do something so despicable? He took comfort that the big one who actually shot a young girl would likely be permanently paralyzed. In the guard's view, he got what he deserved.

The guard stood to attention when a weary detective loosely clothed in an old fashion trench coat walked up to him.

"Has there been any change?" He asked, his eyes drooping from lack of sleep.

"No sir, they haven't woken up yet. They'll really be feeling it when they do though. The kid did a great job smashing the scum under their foot."

The detective ignored the comment as it could get the guard in trouble even if he agreed whole heartedly. "Very well, inform me the moment that they do. I need to have a nice long discussion with each of them." He turned to leave before stopping half-way down the hallway. "By the way, the higher ups are sending a nurse to check on them." the detective said as he pulled out a cigarette, putting it between his lips before fishing for a lighter. He was severely overworked; this marked the third case assigned to him in as many days. He hadn't gotten sleep for about as long. He hoped to catch a few winks in his office before the bastards woke-up.

"Yes, sir," The guard answered, saluting smartly.

Sitting back down, the guard prepared himself for the long wait. It didn't take long as another visitor strolled down the hallway with a push cart.

"Is this the room with all the head trauma patients?" The purplish-red haired young nurse asked of the guard, while gesturing to the door behind him.

He silently nodded.

"I need to have a look at them to make sure they didn't suffer any permanent injury." He briefly examined her id badge before nodding his head. "Okay, Sara Dugal." He unlocked the door for the nurse to enter before sitting back down.

Making sure the door was locked and barricaded by a chair; the girl removed the nurse outfit, allowing a familiar green cape to billow out behind her. Once it settled, the girl took a look at the seven beds holding seven very beaten up men. She shook her head. 'Whether in the kitchen or an assignment, Ranma is always leaving messes for me to clean up. How will he ever learn if he doesn't do his own dirty-work?' She briefly thought before whipping out her dagger. 'Oh well, best get this finished quickly.'

* * *

Author's end notes: Akane's been injured and lies on the brink of death. Will she pull through? What of Soun's tale? How does it relate to Ranma and will he find out?

Please send any comments by review or to me directly if you would like to discuss them.

brindani


	10. Motherly Reminiscence pt1

Author's notes: Sorry about the delay. My second pre-reader has been having some difficulties going through all the chapters I've been sending them. Then again, they are extremely thorough which helps weed out my numerous mistakes. That said, thanks goes to both of my pre-readers; idcallie and James Axelrad. Additional thanks goes to Hee-Haw for taking time to review chapter 9 for improvements.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 10: Motherly Reminiscence pt1

Ranma stood by Akane's bedside as her shallow breathing made his own tremble. Her pale features especially set his hair stand on edge. She truly looked one step away from the grave. His only reassurance was a steady beeping from the heart monitor in the background.

He glanced to the other side of Akane's bed where Soun lay. He had been there for thirty minutes giving blood in what could take up to four hours. His eyes had not shifted away from Akane's limp form since they started the procedure. They said transfusions were typically not done this way, but given the emergency at hand, they had little choice. It was apparent that Soun also didn't like needles as he steadfastly avoided looking at the one in his right arm; the one slowly transferring the precious life giving blood that would save Akane.

Ranma had stood there ever since the doctor informed them that Akane's condition had partially stabilized. She still had a long way to go before everything was certain, but at least, it appeared she was pulling through with Soun's help.

Kasumi remained asleep, clutching her pillow in her arms. She did not even awake when Ranma carried her in and settled her into one of the lounge chairs in the corner. Whenever he checked on her he would find a periodic tear trailing down her smooth cheek.

Seeing those tears on Kasumi's innocent face tore at Ranma's heart. This was all his fault. If he had not come to the Tendo's, the hit men would not have been there either. His senses told him that he was the target from the very moment their presence became known. They were after him and yet the Tendo's were the ones left suffering.

Anguish turned to anger as he thought about those black suited men. 'I'm going back to that hospital and introduce them to more pain than they ever thought existed.' Ranma thought, pounding one fist into his palm. He wanted to jump out the window right now and put his thoughts to action; paying them back for what they had done, but he forced himself to calm down.

'Who ordered the strike? Those guys were likely the lackeys. I need to find the main boss; they are the ones responsible for this. They knew where I was going to be. Yet, how could they have known when I had just arrived? I hadn't even told Altena or Chloe where I was planning on going after I returned home. I could just as easily have gone to my parent's house as gone to the Tendo's and yet, there they were. There was no way that anyone could have followed me given how fast I had been running. But that meant that there were two teams to intercept me, one stationed at the Tendo's and the other…' Ranma's eyes widened.

'My parents!'

Soun blinked as he watched Ranma's face turn to horror before launching himself out the hospital window. 'I wonder where he is going to?' Soun thought, turning his eyes back to Akane.

After dropping four stories to land without a sound he launched himself forward, leaping two roof tops at a time. It was a fair distance to his house. To cover it, he desperately forced as much speed as he could from his legs; leaving cars and motorcycles behind in the congested streets.

It was a testament to his speed that, despite the distance, it took only five minutes to reach his destination. Breathing raggedly, Ranma took in a deep sigh that the house appeared undisturbed. It appeared rather peaceful actually, small moths hovering around the front porch light; the trees gently swaying with the cool spring breeze and, more importantly, no sign of danger.

He thanked every god that might be listening that his parents seemed to have avoided the violence suffered by the Tendos. Shaking his head that he had worried for no reason, Ranma walked up the steps of his home, ringing the door bell. Moments later his mother answered the door. She looked rather surprised at first. She even frowned for a moment looking out both ways as if checking to see if anyone was with him. Ranma was starting to become concerned when Nodoka straightened herself.

"Ranma, what a pleasant surprise, please come in." Nodoka invited, happiness radiating from her features. Her welcoming smile lightened his heavy heart though he was concerned about why she was looking around. It seemed something may not be right here after all.

Ranma entered the house, moving to the family room under his mother's gentle insistence.

He found tea already layed out on the table as if his mother had been expecting guests. After each sat down, Nodoka turned her attention to her son. "I made some tea for Genma and I, but please have some." She offered, gesturing to the kettle before her. Ranma nodded his head, politely pouring the tea for both himself and his mother.

"Thank you very much," she said, lifting her cup from the table before taking a long sip. "Ahhh, that is very refreshing. Your father is rather partial to Sencha tea. I myself did not appreciate its flavor for a long time, but have come to enjoy it over the years." Nodoka took another sip with her eyes closed. "I heard that you left." She said, leaving the real question unasked.

Ranma nodded. "Yes, I helped a lot of people. It came at a price, however." Nodoka accepted his words, calmly taking another sip of her tea without asking for further details.

"Mom, what do you know about the Soldats?" Ranma asked abruptly after taking a sip of his own tea. He didn't expect his mother, the very image of a traditional Japanese housewife, to provide much information. At the same time, he had to start somewhere in his search for information.

His mother was a good starting point as, before he left, his father's comments indicated Nodoka may know more than she appeared. Nodoka didn't even pause from her cup. She lightly set it down after finishing the tea it held. "The only thing I may say about the Soldats is that they are all powerful. They see all…" Ranma almost blinked when he caught Nodoka's eyes quickly turn to the left. Ranma tracked the gaze with his own eyes and found a small black dot hiding just below the window. She returned her gaze so fast that her answer appeared uninterrupted. "…and hear all," she glanced to the right this time where Ranma found another black dot near the kitchen entryway.

Ranma frowned, 'It appears I was right. More is happening here than what was first apparent. She knows about the Soldats. I don't know how she does, but she does. The bugs also explain how they knew where I was. They probably bugged the Tendo residence too and once they knew I had arrived, they attacked. But if this is true, then the same people that took Soun's daughter appear to be the origin of the attack on me. That still does not explain why they attacked me. Not unless they are associated with Jamal and his country.'

"By the way, where is Pops? It's been a long time since I've had the chance to beat the tar out of him." Ranma said, trying to find a way to ask his questions without alerting the very people he needed to know about. Besides, the old man would come in handy if they decided to stage another attack here. It would give him a good chance to release some of his pent up frustration.

Nodoka covered her mouth to hide her giggle. "Yes, he has missed you as well. I sent him out on an errand. He should return shortly. In fact, why don't I give him a call? Nodoka pulled a cell phone from her pocket and pressed a very well worn auto-dial.

It appeared to ring a few times before the person on the opposite end answered.

"Yes, dear. How is it going? The radishes appeared to be spoiled. I see, would you mind taking them out to the trash? Yes, Ranma is here, and expressed an interest in getting reacquainted. So we can expect you in two minutes? Good, good. We'll see you then."

Nodoka stowed the cell phone away after disconnecting. "He should return soon. Would you care for another cup of tea while we wait for him?" Nodoka asked, lifting the teapot before blinking. "I guess I didn't make enough after all. How about I make some more for us? It should only take a few minutes." Nodoka asked, standing up, carrying the tea kettle back towards the kitchen. "Ranma?" She asked stopping halfway there.

"Yes?"

"I thought I saw a spider near the window. I was waiting for your father to handle it, but could you be a dear and take care of it for me? I've had the worst fear of them since I was a little girl." Nodoka asked as she continued on her way to the kitchen.

"Sure thing Mom, I'll smash the bug for you." Ranma said, standing up and walking towards the window. He put a finger to his chin as if in thought as he carefully examined the window. He appeared to be examining it for anything creeping around, but was really trying to figure out how to destroy the real pest without the viewer on the opposite end realizing it.

Crash

"Oops,"

Ranma turned around, using the opportunity to hit the black spot while he did. It stood no chance against his strength, crumbling to bits.

He found his mother on the floor, the kettle having escaped her grasp and was currently spilling its remaining contents across the tatami mats.

"Are you alright?" Ranma asked moving to help her stand. He was a little impressed that the kettle through happenstance had hit the bug on the other end of the room.

Nodoka nodded, accepting Ranma's hand before discreetly looking over his shoulder.

"I'm fine Ranma."

THUNK

The appreciative look on Nodoka's face evaporated, turning serious.

"What was that?" Ranma asked as he attempted to look out the window.

"There's no time. We have to leave immediately."

Heeding her words, Ranma prepared to leave through the front door. He blanched when he realized his mother was quickly removing her Kimono.

"Mom, what are you doing?" Ranma asked, hastily turning away.

There was a heavy sigh from behind him before he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Tentatively he allowed the hand to turn him around where he was quite surprised to find his mother in a loose pale pink t-shirt and a pair of black shorts with the Nike emblem stenciled along the side.

"The Kimono is confining and very impractical if a real fight ensues. We do not have time for further explanations right now, Dear. I'm afraid they will arrive soon to find out what has happened to both of their bugs and their sniper."

Ranma was stunned, he had his senses on high alert and never felt a sniper. That means that the sniper had to be well beyond a hundred meters. Ranma left the thought behind as he followed after his mother. She brought only her katana.

Her eyes glanced both ways making sure there were no suspicious people loitering around in the dark. Seeing none, she tugged on Ranma's arm to continue.

"Ranma, we need to be three blocks in that direction," she pointed directly towards the house opposite of theirs. "I'm afraid that even in my youth I was unable to travel across rooftops easily. Would you be a dear…?"

Answering his mother's question with action, Ranma scooped Nodoka up before dashing forward, leaping clear over the indicated house and into the next yard. A very startled teenage pair broke from their illicit kiss as he landed in front of them. By the time the two startled lovebirds blinked, Ranma was gone.

Ranma kept low, avoiding actual roof-hopping as it would be very visible to the people they were trying to avoid so he barely skimmed over the houses.

"Over there." Nodoka pointed, protectively cradled in her son's firm grasp.

Ranma nodded as he changed course to intercept a badly damaged house, its brown paint peeling from the wood, several boards jutted out at odd angles. It was no surprise that the 'for sale sign' in front of the house was worn as well.

He landed in back of the house lightly placing his mother onto the ground. Extending his senses, Ranma probed as far as he could for potential danger. It appeared that remarkably few people had seen them. Then again, it was night and his top speed made him appear a blur to the average person.

After steadying herself from the rollercoaster ride known as her son's primary means of transportation, Nodoka walked up to the back door, opening it without a key and entered. Ranma followed his mother in. He kept up his senses despite how draining it was to insure no one would interrupt them. He had a feeling that his mother didn't just bring him here for no reason.

At first he could see very little of the interior of the room as light from the street lights outside did not penetrate well through the boarded up windows. This changed abruptly as a light flared to life from the middle of the room. He found an old oil lamp lit, his mother stood blowing out a match.

Looking around at the now revealed room, he found the inside of the house just as run down as the outside. Dust caked the floorboards and walls alike. Appearing as if someone had come in and painted both the floor and walls a dingy grey. The only thing to disprove this theory, were the footprints his mother made before him uncovering red carpeting. In the center of what he assumed was the main room stood three old wooden chairs.

Nodoka took one of these chairs, gesturing towards the one opposite herself. Ranma accepted the invitation, sitting down to face his mother.

"I'm very sorry about all of the fuss, but it was necessary to avoid prying eyes."

Ranma nodded. He could appreciate the need for security given that someone had tried to kill him earlier and likely would try again if they had stayed longer.

"Where is Pops? I'm guessing he took out the sniper." Ranma asked. 'Gees, he must have thrown the guy a long way for us to hear it. Must have been the signal that Mom was waiting for.

Nodoka nodded, a large smile spread across her face. Ranma was surprised to find pride in that smile with more than a hint of strong affection. He had never noticed before, but his Mom truly loved his father. He pondered his own feeling about the old man. His father had done a lot of very stupid things, placing Ranma into situations more chaotic and embarrassing than anyone had the right to. At the same time, he always tried to help Ranma back out if he could, even if he typically made things worse.

"Your father is distracting our pursuers, leading them along a false trail to buy us time. He should be fine."

"Yeah, there isn't many things that could give Pops a run for his money. Now, what did you want to talk to me about?" Ranma asked his mother.

Nodoka simply nodded her head, lightly placing her katana on the ground within easy reach.

"There are many things that we need to discuss, but have not had the chance to do so. I take it you have already spoken with Altena?"

Ranma blinked in surprise. "How do you know Altena?" Ranma asked dumbfounded.

"It is a long story. Unfortunately, many aspects we do not have the time to go over. Suffice it to say I too was chosen to become a part of Noir."

"Noir? Soun mentioned Noir. What is it?" Ranma asked, his face scrunching up as he confirmed that Soun's tragedy may be more related to his circumstances than he thought. Nodoka blinked, shaking her head.

"Yes, that would be something she would do," Nodoka murmured to herself before answering Ranma's question. "Noir represents the hands of the Soldats…"

Ranma's mind swam as connections were made. The Soldats were the ones trying to kill him. His mother just said that Altena was associated with Noir and therefore the Soldats. Could Altena really have ordered a hit on his life? Ranma shook his head. No, it just wasn't possible. Altena had been nice to him. She had been the only one to comfort him at a time when even he needed it. She couldn't be the person responsible.

Ranma tried to force the doubt to the back of his mind, but it kept resurfacing. The idea that he had denied her proposition to stay with her and thus may have been considered a security risk. He could have led others to the Manor. Maybe the assassins were sent to take him out for security reasons. No! If she wanted that she could have killed me in my sleep that night. There was no way that Altena would do that.

"Are you all right?" Ranma lifted his head, meeting his mother's concerned gaze. He realized he must look quite upset holding his head like this.

"I'm okay. I… just thought of something. Please, continue." Ranma said, forcefully dropping his hands to his side. Nodoka nodded uncertainly, but continued despite her reservations about Ranma's health.

"Yes, they represent the black hands that carry out the Soldats' less savory work. They are the best assassins of their generation. They surpass all others. It was what I was to become at one point. I was chosen to become one of those hands; taking life to protect innocents everywhere. Altena was another candidate for Noir. As tradition holds, there were two sets of possible candidates to be initiated.

I don't remember it, but I was taken from my family when I was only a baby and trained intensely to become the best of the best. I absorbed all of their training as easily as you did the martial arts. Of my generation, I was the best at killing."

Ranma listened uncomfortably to the explanation. His mother, a killer? Somehow the image of her caring persona killing felt wrong on many different levels. He could only hope that if he listened, it would make sense.

"It may sound odd, but I did not begrudge my fate. We protected innocent people from corrupted politicians, mass murders, dictatorships, and many others. Besides, at the time I knew nothing else.

There were no assassins better than Sakura and I. The underworld trembled when mere rumors of our presence circulated. As there was another group for the title, we called ourselves Rion, or Noir spelled backwards. It was a private joke between the two of us." Nodoka whispered, her eyes going distant as she remembered days long past.

"To become the true Noir, we underwent ritual trial by combat. We passed each test with ease, letting no one, male or female, stand against us. By the end of the trials we truly believed ourselves invincible. If ever Sakura got into trouble, I was there to help her and the same went for me. We watched each other's back.

A very hard time came for me then. The final trial was held near the Manor; Sakura and I against Altena and Mio. It went very well in the beginning. We out flanked Altena and Sakura took out Mio. With two to one odds, we thought our victory was assured. How wrong we were. Seeing her partner fall, Altena became a demon incarnate, moving faster than I have ever seen. In minutes, she had outmaneuvered Sakura and left her to die in a pool of her own blood. Everything became a blur past that point; it was a battle of rage as I too became incensed when I found my precious Sakura dead. We traded shots at fanatical speeds, each scoring our own hits.

It was a long drawn out battle and by the end we were both riddled with wounds. It all came down to a stand off. My gun pointed at her head and her's at my heart. We would both have died that day if we were not so drained."

"So what happened?" Ranma asked, leaning forward as he became engrossed in the story.

Nodoka smiled at Ranma's interest. "Well, Altena's eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she fainted."

Ranma fell off his chair.

"Yes, I know, very anticlimactic."

"Then you won. That also means you spared her life." Ranma said recovering his seat while nodding in understanding.

His mother shook her head. "I did not win, and I would not have spared her life after what she stole from me."

Ranma's brow scrunched in confusion. "Then…"

"I fainted just after she did."

Down Ranma went again. Nodoka stifled her laughter behind her hand. It took a little while for her to control her laughing and for Ranma to reseat himself.

"The witness for our fight took our battered bodies away for healing. When I awoke next, I found the high priestess standing before my bed, shaking her head. We had failed the final test. The trials were meant to separate out the weak, leaving the strongest pair to serve the Soldats as Noir. As Altena and I could not become a pair, we were stripped of our title as Noir candidates. Given the choice to stay with the Soldats or leave, I choose to leave.

At the time, I was far beyond incensed. In less than three hours I was not only stripped of the partner that I loved dearly, but of the title that I had spent countless years to attain. From that day on, I became hotheaded, taking any assassination job available no matter the danger. More than once I almost died on those suicidal missions and very likely would have if I hadn't met your father." Nodoka said closing her eyes in resignation.

"That's right; you've never mentioned how you met Pops."

"I suppose I have not. Would you like to hear about it?" Nodoka asked.

"Yes, actually. It's something I've always been curious about."

"True, you have a right to know that as well. It is a story in itself. I am slightly parched, why don't we take a small break to get something to drink? I placed a reserve of a few gallons in the house" Nodoka asked, moving to the kitchen to fetch some water.

* * *

Author's end notes: Originally this scene continued up until the end of their conversation. I thought it best to split it into two parts to push an important scene to the end of the next chapter.

It takes me an average of 14 hours to complete a chapter between writing and editing. Please take 30 seconds of your time to hit the little Go button on the bottom left and tell me how I'm doing. Unsure of what to say? Tell me what I am doing right. Tell me what I am doing wrong, preferably with an explanation of why and how to fix it. Tell me I'm doing a good job. Tell me I'm doing miserably, again with an explanation of why. You could also offer suggestions for things you would like to see in the future. I try my best to use ideas from readers as long as they do not cause problems with the planned story.

brindani


	11. Motherly Reminiscence pt2

Author's notes: I'd like to thank everyone that reviewed last time. Your comments were very insightful and motivating. I have a new pre-reader I would like to thank for checking out the story and helping make it better. His screen name is PlatinumPlayer and he put a lot of time and effort into screening for problems. James Axelrad and idcallie also did a wonderful job of hunting many of my errors. Hee-Haw has also been giving me in depth advice on what elements of my story could use improvement. I really appreciate everyone's help, without these guys I know the fic would not be nearly as good.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 11: Motherly Reminiscence pt2

"I'm sorry about having nothing to offer aside from water. It is the only thing I have stored here." Nodoka apologized as she reentered the room with two plastic cups of water.

"Don't worry about it. I'm used to plain water." Ranma answered, quietly, still thinking about what his mother's explanations thus far. Ranma faced his Mother again as she settled back into her chair.

"To continue where I left off, it was nearly a month after the trials and I had run myself ragged doing jobs. I'm sure people were beginning to suspect there were more than one of me with how many hits I did. I was driven to continue, thoughts of my lost Sakura and title plagued me day and night. Only work offered any reprieve, forcing me to concentrate so hard on staying alive that the pain dulled briefly. It was during this foolish marathon that I was hurt. Unwilling to listen to my body's pleas for rest, I immediately started the next job. I was exhausted, still recovering from a shot to the arm, but it didn't matter. I took the job, hardly paying attention to the name.

Those other assignments were a blur, but this mission I will remember for as long as I live. I snuck into the main house to kill the Saotome head." Nodoka sighed when she heard a gasp from Ranma. "He apparently sealed several high-profile deals that caused suffering to some of the lesser houses.

I easily bypassed all of the guards and stole into the manor proper. Security was child's play to circumvent for my highly trained senses. I almost reached my target's room when I was intercepted by someone that was not even suppose to be there. The heir to the Saotome school, according to my sources, was somewhere in Okinawa training with his disreputable master.

It seems Genma returned far earlier than anyone had anticipated due to complications between the local female populous and his master. It must have been quite the surprise to return home after a long training journey only to find me with my gun drawn.

He didn't call for help. He only watched me carefully; examining me with an intensity I did not at the time understand. As a professional, it didn't matter to me why he was staring. He was between me and my target so he had to be eliminated. I can only describe him as magnificent as he evaded each of my shots, eventually knocking my weapon away.

We went hand to hand from there. Twisting and turning in our struggle, I could easily tell I was the better fighter, but he was fresh while I fought both tired and favoring one arm. We made no sound during the encounter, trading blows faster than most could see. It was all for naught, however. My energy failed at a critical juncture, allowing him to score a direct hit. I flew through the air knowing I had finally met my end. My only thought was of Sakura's beautiful smile and how I would soon see it again.

Instead of hitting the wall, I found myself cradled in his strong arms, gently arresting my momentum. I caught only a glimpse of Genma's concerned eyes before I fainted from fatigue."

"What happened then?" Ranma asked, almost falling off the edge of his seat.

Nodoka smiled again as she noticed Ranma's anticipation.

"I thought I was a goner. Failure in my trade meant certain death. That is why I was very surprised to awaken again. When I did, I found myself in a futon, my wounds dressed and a small tray of food by my bedside. Days since my last meal, I must have appeared an animal, completely ignoring the chopsticks and eating by the handfuls. It was shameless really, I went so far as to stick my face in the bowl and lick the remains of the miso soup. Once every last drop had been licked clean, I realized I was not the only occupant of the room. In the far corner sat Genma, observing me carefully, without judgment. I felt cornered. I tried to stand to protect myself, but only managed to collapse, further aggravating my wounds.

Strangely, he simply sat there watching me. He made no threatening movements, allowing me time to settle down. When I had, he told me that I was in no danger that we were away from the head house and its master's wrath. I must have been quite a sight staring at him in shock. Before he left that night, he gave me more food, never approaching close enough for me to feel threatened.

It was a very odd after that meeting. Days passed as if snowflakes on the wind and yet I remember each with crystal clarity. He was always at my side tending to my every need. If I was hungry, he had food prepared for me. If I wanted to walk amongst the lovely cherry blossom gardens outside, he would be by my side, helping me stumble along. It left me confused. I should be dead by all rights. A failed attempt on the head family is a certain death sentence. During the few times he was away, I discovered from the servants left to attend me that I was indeed very lucky to be alive. Just as I thought, Genma's father was infuriated about the attack and had demanded my life.

I was amazed to learn that Genma had stood up to his father, threatening to drop his name and go ronin if his father attempted to harm me. Genma personally guaranteed that I would never try to harm the family head again.

His father had little choice; he either let me live or lost his only male heir. Fortunately for me, he consented to leave me under Genma's care until such time as I showed signs of aggression.

After months of his tender care, I realized something I had never quite understood in my existence of death and killing, a happiness swelled within my heart whenever I was by his side. It was similar to what I felt for my Sakura, yet so much stronger. Contrived or not, I could only call it by one name: love.

Nearly a year after our first meeting, Genma asked the question that made my heart soar. He lowered to one knee looking up to me in adoration before offering me an ornate diamond ring. He told me that his existence had been dark and dreary. The constant strain of learning his future station hid all light from him. He said he had been floundering until a beacon of hope entered his life, that shining light encompassed him from the moment he met me. He said he never wanted to lose that ray of sunshine he saw whenever he gazed into my eyes. He asked me to marry him. I could not have been any happier.

Of course, Genma's father was strictly opposed to the match, consenting only on the condition that I bear another heir for the family. After that point, he all but disowned Genma. All ties were severed between the two aside for their shared last name.

We were wed in a quiet Japanese ceremony and one year later, I was expecting. As far as I was concerned, my life was perfect. I had a loving and talented husband and a baby on the way. As ties to the main house had been severed, we had our own share of problems, but between the two of us, there was nothing we could not surmount." Nodoka's gaze grew distant as she remembered those fateful days so long ago. Their hopes and dreams for a bright future. Until…

"Darkness entered my personal heaven. Days before you were born, I was approached by someone I had not seen in two years, not since that miserable date so long ago when I lost Sakura. It was the High Priestess of the Soldats. She was old and wrinkled from the stress of failing to initiate Noir.

She told me that she was there to find new saplings to take-up the mantle of Noir. My world shattered. If female, my child would be ripped from my arms, forced into that pit of darkness I had miraculously escaped. My skills would be of little use after nine months of pregnancy. Genma would also have had limited success as his art was not one of killing. If I did not consent I, Genma and very likely the child I gave birth to, would all die.

I never prayed more in my life for a boy. And, for the first time in my life, God answered my prayers. I gave birth to you, my precious Son." Nodoka commented as she cupped Ranma's cheek, eyes glistening with the pride and love she held for him. Ranma allowed a small smile as he gently leaned into the hand.

Ranma savored the smooth feel of his mother's hand against his cheek before blinking as he realized something.

"Wait, Noir can only be made up by female members right?" Ranma asked as he stared up to his Mother.

Releasing her tender hold, Nodoka nodded in the affirmative.

"Then why did they come after me?"

Nodoka shook her head, raising one hand for silence before continuing. "You see, despite being born male, the High Priestess still proclaimed you as the fourth sapling or candidate for Noir. It could have been because she was senile, though I doubt it, or perhaps she somehow knew how things would turn out. To my horror, she tried to take you then and there. Genma would allow none of it. Retrained to my bed, I dispatched them while he prevented them from getting closer to my immobile body. By the end, twenty men were either hospitalized or dead, before the Priestess retreated. She left with the promise she would return for the fourth sapling.

For a short while, we went underground allowing no one to know of our whereabouts. It did not last long however as my old sources informed me that the Soldats were outraged by the High Priestess' proclamation. It was understandable when the High Priestess disappeared without a trace. When we reemerged, no one came for you. I was still terribly frightened by the prospect. Being tied with the Soldats can bring great rewards, but can also lead to a quick death.

We soon realized that you would have to be trained; trained to become the best of your generation to avoid falling into the intricate web the Soldats weave.

As I never wanted you to live the life I had, we decided you would learn Genma's art. I was reluctant even then to allow him to take you on the training journey. To ease my fears; he signed the Sepku contract. It guaranteed on his life and yours that you would become a man among men capable of dealing with the Soldats' intrigue or never have to live with the blood of countless others on your hands."

Nodoka stopped, wiping a tear away from her eye as she continued to remember times long past.

Ranma sat silently contemplating what he heard. This was quite the revelation and yet… "Why didn't you have me fulfill the contract when you found out I was cursed to change into a girl? It must have been the culmination of all your fears." He asked quietly almost too low for Nodoka to hear through her tears.

Nodoka sat looking at Ranma silently, considering his downcast gaze. "Ranma," Nodoka again cupped his cheek, bringing his eyes to meet her own. "You are my precious baby boy. It frightened me terribly when I found out you changed into a girl with a bit of cold water. It made me realize that they could come for you; could bring you back to the dark curse known as Noir. Honor demanded your death to shield you from that fate of killing, but I could not do it. I love you so much that at times it hurts. To lose you would be to lose my light in life.

My only hope was that the Soldats would never know. They had lost interest in us a long time ago. To be certain they had fewer chances to find out, I attempted to make sure that you stayed male as much as possible.

My hope was in vain, however. The Soldats are very powerful and somehow, someway they found out about the curse. Perhaps it was Altena's way of hurting me, or perhaps she was afraid that only three Noir candidates would stain her ascendance as she took up the mantle of High Priestess and Leader of Noir. However it happened, she found out and the rest you know." Nodoka finished, sighing as she leaned back against her chair.

"So Altena played me for a fool. And then she went after my friends to either test or silence me." Ranma said, a tingling sensation creeping up his spine.

"Don't get me wrong, Ranma, I dislike Altena for what she did to me and what she is doing now. At the same time, I know her to be very competent and caring in her own way. She is very complex in her thinking. She may have ordered the trials to begin for you, but I doubt it. As she invited you to the Manor and did not tell you about Noir or what she wanted you to do, it behooves me to believe she would initiate the trials without your full understanding and acceptance."

Ranma stared at Nodoka confused. "Then why were those men sent after me and the Tendos?"

"The Tendos? Did they become ensnared in all of this?" Nodoka asked with a frown.

"Yes, there were seven of them. I took them out, but the last guy… he shot Akane."

"Is she all right?" Nodoka asked looking concerned.

"She lost a lot of blood, but Soun is giving some of his so she has stabilized for the moment." Nodoka nodded in time with his answer. "I should have been faster, Akane just burst out of hiding and I couldn't get to him before he shot her." Ranma said his own eyes glistening. He was startled when he found himself drawn into his Mother's embrace.

"Ranma, sometimes you are too kind for your own good. Akane did what she did to protect her family. You did what you could to protect her, but she made her choice and the consequences of that choice are hers alone. Even then, you did everything in your power and very likely saved her life because of it. You have nothing to be ashamed of. You did what you could and that is all that anyone can ever ask of you."

Ranma felt the tears brimming, but held them back. He was a man, damn it.

"Are you going to be all right?" Nodoka asked receiving a silent nod. She pulled back returning to her chair. She knew Ranma was still in pain, but she could only offer the support that he would allow her to. If she had her way, she would grasp him tightly and protect him from all of his woes. At the same time, she knew that it would not do Ranma any good even if she could protect him. He had to stand on his own and face a destiny she had fervently wished against.

It took another minute, but eventually Ranma's head rose. "So why were those men sent after me and the Tendo's if Altena didn't do it?"

"You must remember, Ranma, the Soldats are by no means ruled by Altena. There are many different factions and not all of them see eye-to-eye. A delicate power balance has developed over the ages that dislikes disruption. In general, you represent a deep threat to that precarious balance.

You were born a man and yet may hold a place where only maidens have trod before. I doubt that they would find that acceptable on general principle. Then there is Altena; a failed Noir candidate that found an ingenious method to hold power equal to the leaders of the Soldats. If she succeeds in initiating the next generation of Noir, she will become the High Priestess controlling the hands of the Soldats. They would lose much of their influence. To aristocratic individuals, that would be unacceptable. I could easily see them striking at you directly before they believe you prepared for the trials. If you failed so early it would also reflect poorly on Altena."

Ranma nodded. It made sense and yet something was itching at the back of his mind. Something that seemed wrong. Ranma blinked.

"Where's Pops? He should have been here by now." Ranma asked.

Nodoka's eyes widened, realizing that Genma should have returned nearly an hour ago.

She fished into her pocket pulling out her cell phone. She was about to dial when it rang. Nodoka nearly dropped the phone in surprise; reluctantly answering.

"Husband?" Ranma watched as Nodoka's eyes widened. "It is… for you." She said, her quivering hand offering the phone to Ranma.

Ranma took the offering, placing it next to his ear.

"Yes."

"We have your Father. Come alone to the abandoned warehouse on 4th or he's dead."

Click

Ranma's shaking hand closed the phone, nerveless fingers handing it back to his Mother. Her expectant look indicating that she knew what was wrong.

"What did they say?" She asked silently.

"They have Pops." Ranma said, closing his eyes.

* * *

Darkness had fallen long ago, showering the streets below with the twinkling lights from the stars above. Most people were long since in their bed, tired from a long hard day's work. At least in most places. In an abandoned warehouse on 4th street, several dozen men were anything but asleep.

Crawling around like ants, the men actively patrolled each section of the warehouse, searching every nook and cranny of the gigantic structure. Bright floodlights positioned along each corner illuminated the building, making it as bright as day. In the center of all the commotion tied to a wooden cross was Genma Saotome. His cheeks were purple from a vicious beating. Small lacerations criss-crossed his now tattered gi staining it red; his breathing labored.

The men around him took no notice. They had been told to expect a strong opponent. From the reports given them, they held one of the few aces that would give them success. Taking down the man had been difficult. They had been very lucky to even get a clean shot as he jumped around like a jackrabbit on crack. Even then it took many more shots and a thorough beating to subdue him.

Now that he was subdued, all they had to do was wait for the kid to arrive. Checking his watch, the leader shook his head. And the kid was late. In another ten minutes they would have to shoot the bastard. Not that they would leave him alive if the kid did make it. Even if they were inclined to spare him, he would likely die before help could arrive. Still, he would stay alive long enough to serve their purpose.

Tapping his finger against the crate he sat on, the leader yawned before growling. It was very annoying having to wait with nothing to do. By the nature of their profession, the men liked action and waiting around didn't fill their bank accounts any faster. Most simply wanted to go out and find the kid, but he, the level headed leader, knew that was futile. There were thousands upon thousands of houses the twerp could hide in. No, this was the best and easiest way to flush him out.

Now if only the brat would get here, they could call it a night.

The captive man grunted, forcing his head up. "NO! Don't come any closer." He immediately held everyone's attention as he wildly shook in his confinement. They were unsure if this was a sign that the objective had arrived or the man had gone delusional. Not taking any chances, they double their efforts to scan the area. It wouldn't do to be caught off guard.

"You can't save me now. Just leave and save yourself." One of the guys standing next to the captive was about to slam him in the back of the head, but was stopped by the Leaders hand. The man in the black suit nodded. He realized that when the captive entreats the hero to leave, they always come instead. It happens all the time in the movies. Unlike the movies, this was real life and the kid would find out just how real bullets could be.

"Ranma, my boy. I cannot tell you how proud I am of you. You were taken from your mother at an early age. In a time where most children would cry themselves to sleep in their mother's arms over a scrapped knee, you took my harsh instruction to heart. You practiced both night and day, perfecting each technique until you performed them flawlessly." Genma tried to chuckle, but spluttered as blood dribbled down his cheek.

"I know I wasn't the best parent. I have to admit I didn't know how to take care of a child. Yet you stood beside me even when I did stupid things. For that I thank you.

I know I never said it, but you have grown to become the greatest man amongst men to ever exist. I only wish there was more that I could have done for you." Genma convulsed, his body shaking violently. It took a long time for the shaking to stop and it left Genma ragged. "Please… tell your mother that since the day we met, she has been the sun of my life. Tell her… I wish… I could have held her just one last time.

Remember Ranma, I… love you… my son." Genma's voice drifted off as his chin met his chest.

"If you're out there, you have ten seconds to come into the open before we shoot this man." A cruel smirk crossed the leader's lips before he started counting down. "10, 9, 8,"

BANG

Genma's labored breathing stopped short as the bullet entered.

"Oops, guess I forgot what came after 8," the man said. Now is the time where the boy foolishly charges out, arms swinging to avenge his father's death. It was all so predictable.

The warehouse became very silent as a chilled gust of air swept through the enclosed building.

The men shivered, bringing their arms up to protect against the biting cold. They were startled by the sudden change in temperature. They could even see their own breath as they involuntarily shivered.

"What's that?" someone amongst the group called out, pointing up." His call drew everyone's attention above where they spotted something shimmer near the top of the building.

All their guns trained on the glow as they tried to identify it. Each blinked as the dull object pulsed illuminating a sickly purple sphere gently drifting down. They were captivated by the eerie orb as it pulsed again on its gravity defying path to the ground below.

"Bone crusher." The words were whispered into the drafty wind, echoing from all around. As the phrase ended, the sphere burst, thousands of shards of ruby-red light shot out, lancing through each person's body as they tried to drop to the ground. All made it to the ground, none of them in one piece.

* * *

Far above, the only witness to the massacre, eyes widened with excitement, a happy smile across their lips at the efficiency of what they had seen. The power, the grace. Chloe had met perfection as she witnessed the light go through solid crates to kill the men cowering behind them. That attack was death incarnate, completely unstoppable.

* * *

Authors end notes: I've read a lot of fanfics and have found a general trend. Genma is the lump in the corner that people beat and nearly kill for stupidity. There are exceptions such as an event that changes his perspective. But no matter how hard I looked I have never found one that explained Genma and Nodoka's getting together other than some basic negative themes. There is the typical mentality that Nodoka didn't know what she was doing, she made a mistake, she was forced into the marriage, or was a nymphomaniac. So here is an attempt to show a good reason why she would choose him. Does that mean I think Genma is smart or doesn't deserve the punishment he receives in other fics? No, not really. I'm just trying to cast him in a unique light.

I'd like to thank everyone that has reviewed. Your comments really do help me try and find my trouble spots and fix them. I apologize if it appeared review obsessed during the last chapter. The chapter before only received four reviews the first day with no explanation as to what had been done wrong. I knew that just about as many people had viewed the chapter and yet they were not reviewing. It left me wondering if I had completely messed up the chapter, but not quite enough to elicit flames. Since then, I've taken to reviewing every story I read to hopefully cheer up the author and perhaps give whatever small piece of advice I can offer.

Anyway, please review to tell me if you like the story or point out parts that could use a little more work.

Thanks for reading,

brindani


	12. A Dish Best Served Cold

Author's notes: I'm sorry about the late update. My prereaders are either having personal or computer difficulties. Either can be very annoying. PlatinumPlayer's help led to quite a few changes including an extra scene. Both he and James Axelrad have really helped making sure that Chloe didn't get too OOC. HeeHaw's suggestions are very helpful as well, though sometimes I have difficulty implementing them. I'd also like to thank everyone that reviewed. Your very nice comments makes it much easier to continue writing with everything that has been happening lately.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 12: A Dish Best Served Cold

Thick streams of crimson trickled towards the drains, small bits of white and pink bobbling along with the current. Muffled footsteps resounded in the warehouse, walking through the course fluid. Ranma paid the sticky fluid rolling over his feet no mind, slowly moving to the only other person still intact along the ground. Ranma stopped before his father, gazed into once energetic eyes now lowered lifelessly. He could almost imagine the Old Man was simply knocked out after one of their morning spars. He had the inane desire to slap Genma in the face to wake him up. Ranma knew better; knew that no matter how hard or numerous, slapping would never again wake his father.

"Chloe," Ranma's voice was flat, and cold. In the now empty warehouse it echoed, drowning out the sound of draining. Moments later, said girl splashed down next to Ranma's rigid body. Ranma did not shift his gaze.

"Who did this?" Ranma's voice held no emotion. A voice used just as easily to ask if the weather would be nice the next day. Chloe forced the pleased smile from her lips.

"They are very secretive, difficult to find. I do not have a name, but I traced their location to a secure room in an office downtown."

"Where?" Chloe almost swallowed, Ranma cold persona filled the word, sending shivers down her spine. She would never have imagined that the playful boy she remembered from the Manor hid a mighty warrior. She quickly handed a slip of paper to the young man. Ranma took it, slipping the paper into his soiled pocket.

With tenderness Chloe had never seen from Ranma, he undid the bindings that held his father, gently cradling the body in his arms. He stared at the unresponsive body, a brief flaming aura flashing around him. The blood around him flashed, clouds of bloodied smoke rose around him yet left those in the corona of flames untouched. Abruptly, the flames vanished just as fast as they appeared. Without another word, Ranma quietly left through the main entrance.

Chloe watched him leave outside the ring of scorched blood. He held a smoldering inferno within, hidden by a frigid frost. Her eyes narrowed. He was acting like a warrior, cold and calculating, but he still allowed such trivial things to bother him.

Looking up to the barren blood stained cross, Chloe frowned. She had never known her own parents; never even given them a second thought until now. The closest thing in her life was Altena. Then again, if it was Altena's lifeless body strapped to the cross… perhaps she did understand.

Nodding her head, Chloe left the area, the stench was becoming unbearable.

* * *

Ranma had done it. She buried her Old Man in secret. Her Mother's tear streaked face the only other witness to the impromptu funeral. Now there was no time for grief, or tears; there was only revenge and Ranma would have it in spades.

She stood across from an office building, standing tall amongst its many high-classed neighbors. Chloe's information led here. Inside on the fourth floor of the west wing, Ranma would find what she was looking for.

Ranma's eyes remained locked on her target far above as a shadow detached itself from a nearby alley. Chloe strode out, her cloak billowing behind her.

The redhead nodded to the new arrival, receiving one in return.

"You will need help." Ranma nodded, to Chloe's surprise. The pigtailed martial artist she knew would have insisted on going solo. Taking a closer look, Chloe nearly shivered. Ranma's eyes were even harder and colder then in the warehouse, examining every detail around her, cataloging each for later. Where a positive glow once surrounded her, now only frosty calculation remained. Mentally shaking the feeling away, Chloe revealed what she carried.

Handing it to Ranma, she took a step back, allowing the martial artist to examine the box. It was made of cedar, nearly 30 cm by 50 with a small ornate metal latch. Opening the box, the Redhead examined the contents. It was a gun, not very large, containing a handle with a good grip. Aside from the gun, there was a full clip and a long cylindrical piece. Ranma shot Chloe a questioning look.

"A Beretta 9000s quipped with an attachable silencer." She answered anticipating the question.

"Are there any spare clips?" Chloe was a little surprised. Every time a gun was suggested for the previous mission, Ranma steadfastly refused. It appeared that Altena was correct. The older woman had given the package to Chloe before she left, saying that Ranma would need it.

Ranma accepted the proffered clips, placing them behind her in an unseen pocket. Setting down the case, she removed the gun from the styrofoam, screwing on the silencer and locking the clip into place. Standing silently, she gazed at the instrument of death; the weapon that would deliver her revenge. With a foot, she flipped the ornate box into the air, the box exploded midair, two chirps hitting it dead center.

"Do you have any spare knives?" Ranma asked, ignoring the small bits of debris falling around them.

Chloe raised an eyebrow before revealing a spare belt containing 35 knives in small pouches with a nylon holster. She was rewarded by a small cold smile. Ranma accepted the belt, efficiently attaching it around her waist.

"Here." Chloe handed a small headset radio to Ranma. She settled the lightweight radio against her ear before her eyes hardened.

"Let's do it." Ranma announced turning towards the building.

* * *

Tom's large mouth opened wide, ushering a loud yawn before wiping at his tired grey eyes. 'Damn, I hate the night shift.' He thought, mournfully staring into his cup of coffee. 'I hate cold coffee.' He shivered in aggregation. Whipping around he balefully glared at the black suited man in black that had been tapping him for last two minutes. 'But I hate rookies most of all!' He finished as his eyes seared into the new guy Central dumped into his lap.

"What is it, Rookie!?" He barked.

"Uhhh, sir did you want the rest of your corndog?" Smith said, cautiously backing away while tentatively pointed towards the untouched meal on Tom's cafeteria tray.

Tom grumbled under his breath before throwing the corndog at the man's head. Smith neatly snatched the meal out of the air with a smile. "Take the stupid thing. Just remember that you earned an extra hour of target practice tomorrow." Tom said, his eyes becoming fierce.

Smith shuffled back from his mentor, afraid he really overstepped his bounds this time. He wiped his brow when the fire extinguished itself, replaced by another large yawn.

"God damn it, it's too friggen early to have to deal with you. Good thing this blasted shift is over in twenty minutes." Tom said, eyeing the clock on the far end of the cafeteria. He was looking forward to seeing his new wife of two weeks. He sat down, eyes glazed as he remembered again the honey moon and just how much he loved her energetic fingers.

'Of course that is part of the reason that I got stuck with Chuckles here.' Tom thought dourly as he watched his newest assignee wolf down his corndog. 'Couldn't marry my supervisor so had to get reassigned to the central office of Tokyo. Of course, as soon as I arrive I get orders to take out some kid. Vindictive son of a bitch manager really nailed me when I refused. Damn guy hides in his office ordering hits on little kids. It just doesn't sit well with me, capping kids.' Thoughts of his own expected child drifted across his mind. 'Damn, I must be getting soft. Fortunately the greedy bastards from Omega team were more then happy to take up the slack.'

He glanced up at the clock and smiled. 'Two more minutes and I'm out of here.'

"Intruder alert, Intruder alert. All inactive agents are to initiate dragnet protocol four. Alpha team has section three. Beta team has section seven…"

Smith slowly turned around, mouth poised above the final bite of corndog, to watch wide eyed as his mentor cuss at the speaker for a full twenty seconds before standing.

"Come on, Rookie, looks like someone is itching to piss me off tonight." Everyone else in the cafeteria had already stood, heading for the door with guns drawn.

Smith dutifully stood, popping the last tidbit into his mouth before wiping his brow of sweat and his lips of ketchup.

The frustration on Tom's face faded, replaced with professional calm. Touching his earpiece, he activated his connection. "Central, this is Alpha team leader heading to section three."

"Roger, team Alpha has three minutes to make their sweep."

"Copy that, Central." Waving his hand, his team followed him out the door into the hallway proper.

Every nerve in Tom's body shook as he ducked back into the cafeteria. Squatting, he found a knife vibrating above where his head was seconds ago.

'Damn their good.' Seven of his men lay in the hallway. Those who survived, ducked behind doorways. If nothing else, his Alpha team was well trained. Only problem was that their twenty were down to thirteen and they had no idea of how many they were up against.

All of these thoughts flashed across Tom's mind in milliseconds. He quickly opened the box next to the door. 'And they always patronized me for carting around my namesake.' He thought, revealing his personalized Tommy gun, modified from the M1928 with a lighter frame and slightly larger drum. It may be antiquated, but it suited him just fine.

Ducking back out into the hallway, Tom cracked the door open, ducking just in time to avoid another knife. Moments later, he returned fire. A blur of motion rounded the corner. He didn't even blink as he noticed three more men fall like flies.

He squeezed off another round. The corner hiding the enemy exploded, driving them back. They hastily retreated from the deadly stream of lead death.

Carefully, he kept an eye on the corner before tapping his ear piece.

"Central, this is team Alpha, we have the intruder penned down in section four. Requesting backup."

"Roger that team Alpha, Beta team will be there in three."

Tom frowned, Beta team was always slow getting off their asses. Knocking off another section of the corner covering the intruder, Tom waited cautiously. They had them trapped in a dead-end hallway. There was no way of getting out without coming under fire.

Issuing some complicated commands with a hand, Tom did not look back as the rest of his men entrenched themselves along the hallway. He may not have been there long, but his men were all professionals.

"Are we going to be all right, sir?" A voice squeaked behind him.

Tom's eyes narrowed. 'Almost all of them.'

"They took out ten guys in the blink of an eye. We didn't even get a look at them!"

"Shut up, Smith." Tom's inattention cost him. Turning back, he found a sickly purple sphere rolling towards them. "Damn it." Tom knocked Smith back into the room, diving away from what sent his senses screaming. No one in the hall survived.

* * *

Frigid blue eyes surveyed the mess in the hallway before nodding. Two figures darted out of hiding, streaming up the next flight of stairs. As they emerged, they found themselves surrounded; seven men rushing down the hallway from each side. Ranma's gun happily chirped while her other hand flipped out three knives.

Chloe wasn't doing quite as well. Three knives flashed from each hand, but the last man on her side brought his gun to bear. Chloe grabbed for another knife, concentration on high. She never noticed the man coming from the next floor up directing his gun towards her head. Putting pressure on the trigger and…

BANG.

Chloe flipped around, reaching for more knives. She watched as the man hiding on the stairwell fell forward, a shot to the head.

Ranma nodded in her direction, "Got your back."

A ghost of a smile appeared on Chloe's lips before she pointing to the end of the hall. Ranma's eyes followed narrowing as they settled on a very thick iron door.

"Care to take it down?" Ranma's caped companion asked.

"No," Ranma answered, casting a speculative look along the ceiling.

Chloe gave her an askance glance.

"I want to meet this person face to face. I want them to suffer as they made my Pops suffer. We've taken them by surprise so far, but eventually they will organize. A shredded metal door will be a dead giveaway." Ranma's ice cold eyes lanced Chloe, sending a tingle of excitement through her body. She was starting to like this new Ranma. "Can you cover for me, while I have a nice chat with our little friend?" Ranma asked.

"Yes." Chloe answered, promptly opening a nearby door, ducking in. Ranma shot another person coming from the next level before hopping up and prying an air vent off. Entering into the vent, she reattached it before crawling along.

She was rather surprised that they made them large enough to crawl through. Hadn't these Soldats ever watched an action flic?

Even in her smaller form, the duct was cramped and dusty. She repressed a sneeze as she crawled along, actively scanning with her senses. When the redhead made it to the room, she kicked out the corresponding vent, leaping down.

BANG.

Ranma's gun went flying, landing against the far wall.

'Damn.' Ranma thought, slowly turning around with her hands up. Ranma was left gawking. Next to a solid oak desk with several neat stacks of papers as well as a bottle of exotic red wine, stood Nabiki in a blue business power-suit.

"Saotome, of everyone I was expecting to come popping up, you were near the bottom of the list." Nabiki said holding a gun at Ranma's heart.

"Nabiki? You're suppose to be in Tokey-U. What are you doing here?" Ranma demanded softly, keeping her arms well within sight as Nabiki had not lower her weapon.

"What, you mean that bull cover story I fed my family? It was only an excuse to get out of the house and take my first steps into the real world." Nabiki smirked as Ranma's face frowned. "That girl that stole you away changed my life. Her little letter threw open the doors for everything I ever wanted."

"But why would you?" Ranma asked silently.

"Why? I just told you, they offered me everything I wanted. They promised something greater then money and they delivered beyond my wildest dreams." Nabiki humphed, never taking her eyes or gun off of the pigtailed girl. "I once thought money was all that was important. I mistook its importance because it brought power and influence over others. I associated all power with money. They showed me how wrong I was. The Soldats have so much influence and power it transcends mere money." She finished, using her left hand to take a sip of her vintage wine.

"I've discovered new, ever more powerful means of control since I came here. Each make my old petty life seem like a toddler playing in the sand." Ranma remained solid, staring at Nabiki in fury.

"That's not like you, Ranma. You've always got something to say. Where is your witty comeback; your vaunted attempt to put me off guard by making me angry? I thought your fighting style was based on it." Nabiki's lopsided grin grew, pleased by the turbulence her words cause. "Then again, making my Glock 19 angry would probably be bad for you health, wouldn't it?" She patronized as if talking to a small child.

Nabiki raised a brow when Ranma did not take the bait.

"I guess it really doesn't matter. Even you could not get past my guard in such close quarters. I'm sure if I even blinked wrong you would be all over me, but you'll never get the chance."

Zap!

Nabiki's eyes widened as she watched her gun arc away, flipping into the far corner.

"What!? But how…?" Nabiki exclaimed, grunting as she was roughly shoved to the ground.

Ranma slowly lowered her arm, pointing her index finger at Nabiki. Her face neutral, an icy calm swirling around her.

"You are far too slow."

"Is that how you knocked my gun away? Moving faster then I could see?" Nabiki asked pushing herself up against the wall.

"No, I used a technique."

"You didn't call out an attack, and I certainly didn't see anything." Nabiki said, slowly shifting herself against the wall.

Ranma sneered back. "You certainly don't have to call some frivolous name to use a special technique. That is silly; something I use to do that literally telegraphed my next move for my opponent. It was lucky for me that stupid idiots always returned the favor.

Now, allow me to demonstrate." Ranma pointed her index finger at Nabiki, thumb raised as if a gun. On the tip, a blue sphere clouded with a haze of black shimmered into existence. The small ball was incredibly tiny, roughly the size of a pea.

"Bang," Ranma whispered, laying her thumb flat to the index finger, the sphere shot forward, flicking blood from a thin cut of her cheek. Her eyes widened as she looked behind her. There was a hole leading straight out of the building. It scared Nabiki out of her mind, she fumbled backward away from the pea sized hole in the wall.

"That is how I disarmed you." Ranma said, staring down at Nabiki's quivering form coldly.

"What was that?"

"Didn't you recognize it? It was a Mouko Takabisha." Ranma answered coolly, already another sphere shimmering on the end of her finger.

"I've seen Mouko Takabisha before and what you did was nothing like it." Nabiki argued, trying to buy time as she regained her wits enough to slowly move towards her gun.

"You must be referring to the old version. That antiquated thing was slow and clumsy; meant only to cause concussive damage in a protracted battle. It worked well enough for a non-lethal fight, but it was hardly appropriate for, how did you put it, the real world. I compacted it, forcing the energy into a single point. The compact energy makes it proportionally faster." Ranma explained, having turned away from Nabiki as she did.

Nabiki covertly crawled along the wall warily watching Ranma's back, reaching her gun. She aimed it towards Ranma's inattentive form, covered by her arm.

Click

Nabiki blinked.

Click

Click

Click

Nabiki became desperate; she pulled her gun into view before gasping. Half of it was sheared off.

"Did I mention that those 'bullets' go through nearly anything?" Ranma asked turning fully towards the fallen girl.

"No I'm afraid you forgot to mention that part." Nabiki drolled, eyeing Ranma's gun across the room, wishing it was closer.

Psssshht.

Ranma tapped her headset; eyes lancing Nabiki as the girl kneeled to jump for Ranma's gun. Those cold blue penetrating eyes caught hers. Like a snake to a field mouse, the pigtailed assassin's made her shake in terror. Their frosty blue depths promised suffering the world had never seen.

"They are coming in greater numbers. We should depart soon." Chloe's muffled voice differed from her ear.

Ranma pressed the switch on the side. "Go on ahead. I'll leave shortly. I have one more thing to attend to." Ranma replied giving Nabiki a deadly look.

"Rendezvous at the church?"

"I'll meet you there."

The voice disappeared. Ranma depressed the switch her eyes never leaving Nabiki's

"Why did you order my death?" Ranma asked, wisps of chilled air rolling off of her body.

Nabiki shivered as the temperature dropped dramatically in the room. The cold fury hidden in redhead's eyes convinced Nabiki that Ranma was serious, but the martial artist made a mistake she could exploit. She was trying to find answers. Summoning all of her courage, Nabiki broke the compelling lock Ranma's eyes held her in.

"The orders were from higher up. If I didn't follow them, they would have killed me. Besides, there isn't an assassin alive that could take you on. You are the best there is. Or are you saying some two-bit assassin ever stood a chance against you?" She was surprised when Ranma brushed the stroke to her ego off with a scoff.

"So you ordered a two pronged attack, bugging both your home and my parent's house to find out where I would be before striking." Ranma said, her glare not lessening a wit.

Nabiki blinked, Ranma should not have known about either the bugs or the multiple groups assigned to the project. She was wrong about the number, however. They had also bugged Ukyo's shop on the chance she went there.

"Yes…" She agreed reluctantly. She did not like how this was going. Ranma should have taken the bait. Instead, she bypassed the diversion completely. That wasn't good. Nabiki was no match against Ranma. Her only hope lay in waiting, eventually the search squads would come. Once they came, she would be saved. Unfortunately, Ranma wouldn't stand for her delaying tactics.

"How could you do it? You ordered those men to attack me in your own home."

"They had strict orders not to hurt my family." Nabiki answered, pushed into the defense. Something she was quite unfamiliar with in a verbal debate.

"Come on Nabiki. I know you're smarter then that. What do you think Akane was going to do when people invade her home? Did you think she was going to dutifully hide under the bed hoping the bad men would go away?"

"What are you talking about? I arranged for a school activity that kept her away from the house."

"Your information is out-dated. That's not like you Nabsy. Not only was Akane there, but she was also shot and nearly killed by your men."

Nabiki's eyes widened in shock.

"That's not possible, I ordered them to leave my family alone." Nabiki cried, her mouth opened wide in horror.

"Now we're going in circles. Do you really think anyone in their right mind, much less an assassin, would stand by while Akane charged at them? If I hadn't been fast enough, they may have gotten Kasumi too." Ranma's words shook Nabiki, leaving her wide-eyed in the corner.

"No! It's your fault, you should have protected her. You should have taken them out faster." She accused desperately. She could order a hit on anybody in a second, but her own family, they were one thing she held higher then even her own lofty goals.

"This coming from the person that sent the men in the first place?" Ranma replied with a raised brow.

"It's not possible. There was no report of anyone hurt. They said you escaped without a scratch. They were desperate; they had to have you killed at all costs. I mentioned your parents…" Nabiki quivered as she found herself knocked into the opposite wall. She tenderly held her throbbing jaw. Ranma had hit her; a woman. It was almost as shocking as seeing the pigtailed girl here.

"**You** told them about my parents." Nabiki found new depths of fear as she gazed into the flaming blue eyes scant inches in front of her own.

"B…b…ut your father is almost as tough as you are. They were bound to get tired of chasing you two once they realized it was impossible." She said desperately as she saw her chances for survival shrink by the second.

"You really don't understand anything do you?" Ranma asked, her frosty gaze going sub-arctic, freezing Nabiki stiff.

"What do you mean? I know more then you can dream of." She cried out, a scared child faced against the legendary boogieman made flesh.

"Then I'd better add delusional in there as well." Ranma said drawing closer by the second to Nabiki's cowering form. If you fire enough bullets at someone, you're bound to get a lucky shot in."

"What do you mean?" Nabiki asked, realization and horror seeping through her terror.

"They got that lucky shot. They brutally beat Pops and then shot him to lour me into the open. They killed him before my eyes Nabsy." Ranma emphasized, her face brimming with frigid rage. "Now the only thing left to do is to take my revenge." Ranma said, abruptly stepping back, pointing a sickly black sphere towards Nabiki's chest.

"No! I never intended this to happen. They forced me to do it. They lied to me! They never said Akane had been hurt. I can help you get the people that ordered everything. I can find out who they are for you. Please, I have to get revenge for what they did to my sister."

"My revenge takes precedence and pawn or not, Nabiki Tendo must die."

"NO!"

Ranma dropped her thumb.

Red splattered across the far wall, dripping slowly to the ground.

* * *

Author's end notes: To tell the truth, I'm not sure what to say after that last scene. It came out much better then I expected. Ranma has taken his revenge, or has he? There is a new focus, the ones responsible for ordering his death are at large. How will he find these people and where the hell are the original Noir girls! Unfortunately, they will be taking a backseat for awhile.

The scene with the agents was deliberate. In all of these shoot-em-up anime's you never really see any personality behind those guys in dark suits and glasses. They're just drones meant to be knocked off without having the corresponding emotions that come with killing a real person. This was an attempt to give them a little personality and show a little more of a human side to them, no matter how brief.

Reviews are much appreciated as they help me improve as a writer and encourage me to continue with this story that has truly gotten far larger than I had ever expected. Please take a moment to leave a response.

Thank you,

brindani


	13. Respite

Author's notes: Thank you to everyone that reviewed the last chapter; especially those with a discerning eye. I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that only James Axelrad out of my original prereaders has gone through this. The good news is that Weebee has very kindly helped to go through and help hunt for errors when time allows. So this isn't as refined as it could be, but should still be decent. A very large thanks goes out to both of them for all of their help.

Disclaimer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 13: Respite

One-by-one, crystal clear stars twinkled their last in the twilight of dawn; snuffed out by the encroaching sun's omniscient presence. It was a calm and quiet time. Disreputable predators of the night lay down from their never ending pursuit for hapless pray while upstanding citizens yawned over their first cup of overpriced coffee. In this odd time where light's grace slowly melted the shadows away, one refused to fade.

The figure moved awkwardly on the cracked sidewalk, teetering back and forth as they staggered forward, their arms shakily spread to preserve balance. Stumbling, the figure crashed against the brick wall next to them. Standing back up, dull eyes gazed at the thin abrasions covering their arms. The pain penetrated the cotton like haze clouding their mind.

Light fell onto the figure. Unsteadily, their head turned towards the intrusive illumination. Glazed eyes squinted, confused by the brilliant ball of flame hanging in the distance.

Groaning, the person raised their hands, clawing at the air as if to rip the light asunder, forcing it away, returning the lost soul to the comforting shadows; the shadows whose seductive touch welcomed them to the oblivion of its dark embrace.

"There you are young man."

Blinking away from the hated light, they turned, attracted by the odd noise. Behind them spun a blurry outline. Squinting, a medley of pinks and blacks melded into a semi-stable figure. 'What was that…? A… sword…?.' The person rested a hand on the wall, allowing the object to stop spinning. Deep caring brown eyes framed by a mess of auburn hair, waved in and out of focus as the person drew closer. 'Red… hair? I know red hair. That face…'

"Mom…"

"Ranma!" Nodoka exclaimed, rushing forward to catch the pigtailed youth as he fainted dead away.

* * *

Baby-blue walls surrounded a sturdy oak king-sized bed dominated by a fluffy pale red silk quilt. A small lump amidst the waves of goose feather softness the only indication the bed was currently occupied. Near the pillow, a little pigtail stuck out. Looking closer, one could see Ranma's pale features, just under the large comforter. He lay there appearing dead, only a slight raise and fall of his blanket covered chest proving otherwise. 

The sun had risen hours earlier, its light slowly creeping across the floor through the billowing curtains, slowly settling onto his weary features. As it reached his eyes, an uncomfortable grown issued forth. His hands instinctively drew up to protect against the light's searing touch. It was one of the few things strong enough to penetrate the haze surrounding his mind. Simple emotions drifted, driving away dreamless slumber. Most prevalent of these emotions was an intense sympathy for drunkards. Though he hadn't touched a drop, his head felt like a bongo drum used by an exuberant Jamaican.

Turning away from the piercing threads of light, the boy found temporary relief amongst the folds of silken warmth. The reprieve allowed Ranma's clouded mind to clear. As with every morning after a serious fight, his body automatically informed him of its status. He was surprised to find that his ki levels were abysmally low, lower then they had ever been in his life. He had seen the dead with more.

Then again he shouldn't be surprised. His ki reserves were not boundless and he had splurged outrageously. He had burned through nearly every ounce of ki at his disposal.

There really wasn't much of a choice. His ki was the only edge he could use to stroll into the middle of assassin central and survive.

As it was, jumping off the fourth story with his baggage was likely the only reason he hadn't been caught by sniper fire.

Thoughts of the ki bullets made him wince. Compacting the technique made it even more draining. He had used several of them after he had been disarmed. And after everything else, there was that powerful blast to cover his tracks and get out. No wonder his body was rebelling.

Knock knock.

Ranma clutched his head, twisting in agony as each of those horrendous crashes hammered through his skull.

To his great relief, the knocking did not continue. Slowly creeping an eye open, he watched the door swinging wide, the hinges thankfully well oiled. A very familiar woman stepped through.

"Ranma, I'm glad you are awake."

Ranma's hands flew to his ears. "Please, not so loud." He whispered desperately.

When the ear shattering voice did not return, he braved an eye open. He found the odd vantage of his mother, wearing a light blue kimono with a nice cherry blossom pattern, standing over him with a mixture of worry and confusion written on her face.

"If I did not know better, Ranma, I would think that you had been out drinking last night." Nodoka said, silently kneeling beside him. "The scent on your breath while I carried you home, however, proved otherwise." Nodoka whispered much to Ranma's relief. She placed a warm soothing hand over his brow. The tender touch calmed his raging headache, allowing the agony he felt to subside.

"I must assume you are overly fatigued. Your symptoms are not typical. I can only imagine it has something to do with the ki your Father had mentioned in the past. If that is the case, some good food should rejuvenate you quickly." Nodoka said, removing her hand. Ranma would have reached out to take back that touch that radiated comfort, but he dared not try against the impending pain motion caused.

Her words were meaningless to Ranma's pained mind, but his stomach recognized them with a hearing as sharp as a panther's. A long drawn out growl echoed from the depths of his belly.

"It appears my diagnosis has been seconded." Nodoka said with a small smile. "Would you prefer me to bring breakfast up or are you feeling well enough to make it to the table?"

Ranma groaned as his stomach's pain momentarily overrode his head's. He clutched at it as it finished its drawn out howl.

"I guess that will have to do for an answer. I will be back momentarily." Elegantly, Nodoka stood, walking out of the room. With the topic of food gone, Ranma's stomach pain eased, allowing him to concentrate on the throbbing in his head. Pushing through clouds of pain, Ranma sat up, wincing as he moved too quickly. He stayed perfectly still; if he didn't, he was certain the jackhammer running full speed in his head would split it in two. Minutes passed by slowly, bringing the throbbing back to manageable levels. By the time he thought he might survive, his mother returned, supporting a large tray.

Ranma's nose went into high gear as the scent of unfamiliar food washed away the pain.

His attention was riveted to the tray as it lowered, revealing a high stack of okinomiyaki smothered in an alluring thick brown sauce. The next, a plate filled with an omelet except all mixed together without any contents, and the final plate held thin crispy strips of meat that smelled heavenly. All in all it was more food then a family of four or five would eat for Thanksgiving dinner.

He briefly recognized silverware similar to that used in the manor. He ignored it immediately. His stomach howled for restitution. Ranma responded with gusto, grabbing whatever was closest at hand.

Three okinomiyaki vanished through the cavern of no return, followed by five strips of the crisp succulent meat with two or three handfuls of the yellow-white mixed omelet next.

Nodoka tisked, but said nothing as her boy was ravenous. She could only imagine the levels of exertion he must have underwent to reach such a state.

In two seconds flat, every single scrap of food had been devoured. Ranma picked up the plate, his tongue poised above the glistening syrup covering it.

"Now, we will have none of that. Hungry or not, you should never sink so low as to lick the plate." Nodoka lightly reprimanded with a frown before offering a smile to the distraught young man. "Besides, there is plenty more food where this came from. Why don't you wait a little while longer while I fetch it?" The temptation was large, but Ranma jerkily released the plate, allowing it to settle amongst its neighbors.

Ranma was amazed as he watched his Mother pick up the large tray. Even he had not eaten that much without some ill-effect. Any regular person would have exploded, but his stomach was adamant that he just hit the top of the iceberg.

He was relieved when his Mother returned shortly with three more plates stacked high with the scrumptious foods. His appreciation for her skyrocketed; she had prepared all of this knowing he would be starving.

Half of the food disappeared in the blink of an eye, but even Ranma had his limits. His notorious stomach simply could not contain so much at once. He slowed; barely finishing everything with a long gulp from a glass of orange juice.

Ranma sat back, contentedly rubbing his slightly distended stomach. A warm fuzzy feeling rapidly spread throughout his body.

"I guess I'll have to place priority on teaching you table manners from now on." Nodoka commented as she gathered the plates into one stack.

Ranma was lifted temporarily from his food induced lethargy. Blinking sleepily, he stared at his mother. "I'm sorry, I was just so hungry, I couldn't control myself."

Nodoka smiled down at him, moving around the table to sit by him. She lightly placed a hand on his head. "I know Ranma, but it is something that you should learn for the future no matter which direction you decide to take."

"But I already have table manners." Ranma argued drowsily, his eyes drifting down as the food settled comfortably.

"We will talk about it later. For now, sleep my precious child." Nodoka's last words faded away into darkness.

* * *

In the blink of an eye, Ranma sat up, jerked out of his dreamless slumber. He hastily looked around, wondering where his mother had disappeared to. 'She was here just a moment ago… wasn't she?' Ranma thought confused as he looked around the barren room. 

Almost as if his thoughts had summoned her, the door opened, revealing Nodoka carrying a small tray with two cups of steaming tea.

"I'm glad that you are awake." She said with a small smile, setting the tray down in front of him before taking a seat on the opposite side of the bed.

Ranma sat up, looking down at the cup in front of him forlornly before hiding it. He had hoped for plates stacked high with food. Already his stomach gnawed at him again, but he could wait. Breakfast had taken the edge off of his voracious appetite.

"Thank you for the wonderful breakfast. I've never had food like that before." Ranma said, gently sipping from his cup, restraining the desire to gulp.

"My, you have learned some manners after all. You are very welcome. I thought you might be hungry after exerting yourself."

"I didn't recognize all of it. I mean, I recognized the okinamiyaki, and the mixed omelet, but the meat..."

"That wasn't actually okinamiyaki, Ranma. They were pancakes with maple syrup, scrambled eggs and bacon respectively. They are heavier foods so should provide you with more sustenance then a traditional Japanese breakfast." They quietly drank their tea.

"I'm sorry, Ranma." Nodoka said, breaking the brief silence.

Ranma's head rose, returning a blank stare. "What are you sorry for, Mom?"

"I'm sorry for many things. Most of all that you were dragged into a destiny that you should never have had to face."

"You mean Noir?"

"Yes, it is the fate of two maidens, their black soles trod over the wicked to lead the children to salvation."

"What was that?" Ranma asked, his head tilted.

"The ancient Soldat scriptures have many sayings regarding Noir. Each represents a different philosophy. Sakura and I decided upon this one. Each Noir that has taken it went on to save many people. At the same time, they were generally frowned upon for questioning the leaders of the Soldats."

"It isn't your fault." Ranma whispered, staring intently into his tea cup.

"What?" Nodoka asked, looking up to Ranma.

"You never caused, nor wanted this to happen. You are not responsible for it. You tried your best to shield me from this fate and for that I thank you. But it is a fate I must face. I know that not all the Soldats were responsible for hurting us, but at least someone in the top ranks ordered my Pops dead, and I will avenge him."

Nodoka smiled, nodding. "I'm proud of you, my son. And I know that your Father was very proud of you as well."

That was when he heard it, a small sniffle. Startled, he found his mother's eyes tearing, brimming with barely restrained emotion. The damn broke, in an instant his mother knocked Ranma's empty cup away, clutching Ranma tightly while sobbing into his shoulder.

"I'm sorry…" sniff "…I can't help it. In one night I lost my beloved husband and… and I thought I lost you too." Her grasp tightened as if to affirm his reality, her tears streaming freely. "You disappeared so suddenly, not telling me where you had gone. I was frantic searching the streets. If I lost you too… I do not think I could continue." Nodoka voice became distant, lost in the torrent life had sent to engulf her world.

Ranma was startled, his Mother had always been a foundation, standing tall and proud no matter the strife sent their way. To find even she could crumble under the strain brought home everything that had happened. In the span of a day he had failed to save his fiancée and was forced to watch his Father die, always restrained by the shackles of a martial artist.

He had reached the end of his tether; broken through those weighty chains. There would be no quarter given. He would make those responsible pay with their lives. Black flames shimmered into existence, surrounding Ranma's eyes as he envisioned the faceless men in black suits slowly withering in agony, dieing by his hands.

The flames snuffed out, settling into a comforting blue as they beheld his grieving Mother. There would be a reckoning, but for now, healing the raw wounds left behind took priority. He wrapped his arms around his Mother, slowly rocking her back and forth. In time, it calmed her, easing the tears.

Time slipped away from the two, allowing Nodoka to recenter herself. Wiping away a few stray tears, she sat back up.

"I apologize for my weakness. I had no right to place my burden on your already heavy shoulders." She said, silently returning to the opposite end of the bed.

Ranma smiled up to Nodoka; one of few he allowed into his heart.

"Don't worry about it. A lot has happened. More then I care to think about." Even Ranma's eyes moistened as the vivid images seared into his soul flashed across his vision. The sight of his Father's once life filled eyes now unfocused would haunt him until his dieing breath.

"Let us speak of other things." Nodoka suggested, seeing the pain radiating across Ranma's face. Her voice dragged him away from the house of horrors his mind had become entrapped in. "Please, tell me how did your trip go? You must have had some very interesting experiences in the manor."

Ranma looked up to his mother, revealing a strained smile.

"That could take awhile. It's a long story."

"Take as long as you need, we have all the time in the world." Nodoka answered with a soft smile.

* * *

It did take time. Ranma explained all of his experiences from Chloe's unexpected arrival to his recent return to Nerima. Nodoka listened attentively, asking questions periodically. By the time he finished, night had long fallen over the city. 

"Yes, a lot has happened during your travels," Nodoka said, her focus off into the distance as she contemplated the tale. Her thoughts were interrupted by a strangled gurgle emanating from below the silken covers. Nodoka smiled as she watched Ranma nervously laugh, rubbing his neglected tummy. "It appears your stomach has also been through some endeavors of its own. Why don't we go down and prepare some supper?" Nodoka suggested, standing gracefully to her feet.

Ranma happily nodded, gathering the scattered cups and tray as he stood. He was rewarded by a small nod of appreciation before they left his room. Ranma realized this was not their old home as they entered the unfamiliar hallway. In fact, it was not the old abandoned house either. The richly embroidered forest green wallpaper was far too clean and elaborate to be apart of that decrepit place.

Depositing the small table onto the kitchen counter, he turned to face his Mother as she made her way to the refrigerator.

"Where are we?" He asked, ostentatiously looking from the seamless white marble floor to the artistic muffin motif surrounding the kitchen.

"We are in one of our homes," Nodoka answered absently, placing a head of cabbage onto the counter.

"One of our homes?" Ranma repeated with a brow raised.

"Yes, an assassin makes a lot of money, and a notorious potential Noir commands a far higher commission. As I had little use for it all, I simply saved it. When Genma and I discussed our future, we decided several houses hidden throughout the city would be very prudent. This is one such house.

It is a way to hide from the eyes of the Soldats. Even with such precautions, we will have to move again sometime in the next two weeks. The Soldats despise being left in the dark." Nodoka answered, placing an assortment of vegetables onto the counter.

"I see." Ranma said, eyeing the marble and remembering the smooth silk sheets he had slept in. "And to think all that time Pops and I were out on the road and we were actually rich." Ranma said, stunned by the newest revelation.

Nodoka offered her son a smile. "We have enough to get by."

Ranma sweat dropped on that one. They had multiple houses apparently stocked with enough food to feed an army and they had enough to get by? Shaking his head, Ranma let it go as he washed the vegetables his mother handed him before making the salad.

* * *

Dinner was a quiet affair, Ranma deliberately eating slowly to prove he had learned something through his experiences in the manor. Of course, anyone unfamiliar with him would say otherwise. 

Ring.

Nodoka stared at Ranma.

Ranma stared at Nodoka.

They blinked simultaneously.

"Are you expecting guests?" Ranma asked hesitantly.

"No, nothing should be arriving until tomorrow, and our less couth associates would have used a more forceful means of entry." Nodoka answered, her brow lowering in puzzlement.

Ranma nodded. He felt blind without his extra senses. They could easily have identified who was at the door, but his ki was so low, using them was impossible currently.

Standing, Ranma walked to the door, his Mother trailing behind with a hand on her sword hilt, ready to draw at a moments notice.

Ranma stood to one side, his gun prepared as he looked through the peep hole. He blinked once before rubbing his eyes and looking again.

"Well I'll be damned. I guess if anyone could find us, it would be her." Ranma said with a small smirk and a chuckle.

"What do you mean?" Nodoka asked, more confused then worried as it appeared Ranma knew their visitor.

Instead of answering, Ranma opened the door, revealing Chloe in her green cloak, waiting patiently. Dispassionately eyes starred into Ranma's own. She looked far from amused.

"You never arrived at the rendezvous." She said, coolly eyeing Ranma.

Ranma shrugged, tugging his pigtail. "Sorry about that, Chloe. I used more energy than I thought. If it weren't for Mom, I would have been in serious trouble."

"Your Mother?" Chloe looked behind Ranma to find a young woman considering her critically. She appeared an older version of Ranma's girl side. Chloe blinked.

"Chloe? As in Ranma's friend Chloe?" Nodoka's smile nearly broke her face in two as she eyed the girl, quickly taking in her profile, nodding as she appraised the young woman. "I've heard all about you. Please come in, there is so much I would like to discuss with you." Chloe blinked again, her hand seized before literally being dragged into the house. It was a little disconcerting. She never even saw the older woman move.

Ranma dumbly closed the door after watching the two disappear around the corner. He could have sworn that he had seen something similar on the Discovery channel. Maybe it was that documentary on trap-door spiders? He didn't know why the imagery came so vividly, but it did.

Realizing he was left alone, Ranma moved to catch up.

He found them sitting at the dinner table, Nodoka serving dinner to Chloe on a plate even as the girl politely declined.

"Come now dear, you are a growing girl that needs her strength. I know just how draining your job can be." Nodoka said pleasantly as she placed a piece of sweet corn onto the plate.

Chloe noticed Ranma nodding his head from the corner of her eye. She refrained from sighing. "Thank you for inviting me to your table." Chloe said, bowing slightly to the Saotome matriarch.

Nodoka nodded back, gesturing for Ranma to sit as well.

Chloe was about to take a bite of corn when she blinked. Nodoka was critically examining one of her knives. Lowering the corn back to the plate, Chloe checked her reserves; one was missing.

"Hmmm, this looks like one of Altena's. It used to be her trade mark when she was working as an assassin." Nodoka commented as she set the knife down in front of Chloe.

'When did she take one of my knives? I didn't even feel her remove it. That should be impossible.' Chloe looked beside her at Ranma's very accurate depiction of a vacuum cleaner before closing her eyes. "Then again, she is Ranma's Mother. Wait… did she just say Altena's style?'

"You know Altena?" Chloe asked neutrally, unconsciously lifting her corn.

"Certainly, we both used to be Noir candidates after all."

Chloe's eyes widened. "You were a survivor of the previous Noir attempt?" Nodoka nodded, "That means that you are…" Chloe's corn fell to her plate. "…The Black Widow of the underworld?" Chloe asked, her tone held a strong measure of reverence.

"My, I haven't been called that in nearly twenty years," Nodoka answered, her hand lightly covering her quiet laughter.

Ranma's eyes widened before whipping around to face his mother. His mouth outlined the words: 'Black Widow?!'

"Please close your mouth, dear. It was only a nickname. I didn't go around marrying men only to kill them. It was more of a misunderstanding. I've been told I was very attractive in my youth…" Chloe raised a brow. "… and men wouldn't leave me alone. On a couple of important missions I ended up killing a few high profile Mafia that threatened to blow my cover. I do not know why the name stuck. It probably would have scared Genma away if he had known." Nodoka finished thinking speculatively.

'Ranma's mother was the fabled Black Widow?' Chloe thought. Swinging her head around, she took in Ranma's stunned expression. 'Apparently Ranma didn't know either. It does explain some of Ranma's talents, but why didn't Altena tell me this from the beginning?'

Not looking forward, Chloe missed the speculative look going up and down her figure, before moving to Ranma's. A wide Cheshire grin spread across Nodoka's face, vanishing as the children turned their attention back to her.

"Ranma could you take care of the dishes for me? I do believe that Chloe and I should have a little girl talk."

Ranma blinked.

Chloe blinked.

'Girl talk?' they thought simultaneously.

"Uh, sure Mom. I can take care of the dishes no problem." Ranma said quickly under a very intimidating look from his Mother. Putting words to action, he started gathering the used dishes.

Nodoka's face became peaceful as she stood, gesturing for Chloe to follow her.

"We can move our conversation into my room. Please, take your plate with you. I'll wash it later on."

'What would the Black Widow want to talk to me about?' A slight twitch began to develop on her brow. 'And why is it that Ranma and apparently his Mother are able to put me off balance so easily?' Chloe thought resignedly as Nodoka led her away to the matriarch's room.

* * *

Author's end notes: For anyone confused about Ranma and his behavior, he is now in a lull after spending himself dry in his revenge. The last chapter was in no a representation of how Ranma will be throughout the story. Certainly when on a job it will be close, but not nearly as intense. 

Why go through all of this? The reason is all apart of why I started this fic. The basic idea behind it is what series of events would be necessary to realistically turn Ranma; fun loving, egotistical, chaos magnet martial artist into a true candidate for Noir in essence as well as name.

What does that mean? Take the Noir girls as a template. They have emotions which are very easy to see both on and off case. The major difference is a whole lot more maturity as well as a distinct lack of inhibition to kill. Kind of a long task to do realistically. I can easily attest to that. This was originally supposed to end after nine chapters. It currently stands at twenty-one chapters with four or five more before the end. By far the longest story I have ever made or plan to ever make again.

Anyway, can Chloe survive the confrontation with Nodoka. Just what does Nodoka want to talk about? Will Ranma ever find out or shall it too be chocked up to the dreaded phrase known as 'girl talk… talk… talk… talk'. Does anyone else hear an echo?

Thanks for reading,

brindani


	14. Hospital Visit

Author's notes: I really don't have much to say. Hefty thanks goes to James Axelrad for continuing his endeavors to help with plotting. I'd also like to thank Weebee for rooting through this and weeding problem sections out.

Disclaimer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 14: Hospital Visit

Cleaning up the dishes didn't take long. Sure, there were a couple of dozen, but even in his weakened state it was easy for him. That task completed, Ranma was left to his own devices in the rather large expensive house.

Idly tapping his foot on the floor, he realized the whole situation made him antsy. 'What does Mom want to talk to Chloe about? She only knows about the girl from my stories. The only thing they have in common is in Mom's past and she didn't appear interested in talking about _thetrade. _So just what are they talking about? I really wanted to know!' Ranma thought in exasperation, dieing of curiosity.

Sighing, Ranma head lowered in thought. 'Sneaking up on two renowned assassins wouldn't be good for my health. Hmmm, what else is there to do?' Ranma thought looking around the plush front living room. 'Maybe the rest of the house will have something interesting to see.

After the ornate kitchen, he was rather disappointed as each room held a chair, a bed, or various other common items. There wasn't much of anything decorative; no paintings, statues or elaborate wallpaper. Then again, his mother said they had several houses. He could imagine decorating multiple houses would be a pain.

His impromptu search led him back to the front door. Leaning against it, Ranma sighed in boredom, closing his eyes. It was a mistake. Images raced across his vision; men laying dead or dieing by his hand. He shivered uncontrollably. Agony filled screams as they slowly died in their own blood. Each added to the blood weighing heavily on his mind. Ranma's eyes shot open as he breathed heavily, clutching his chest.

'The people in the office building didn't do anything to me. They were pawns, pushed around on a giant chess board by some unseen hands. The pawns would be replaced, out to take my life as soon as they find our temporary sanctuary. If he ever wanted this to end, he would have to find the king. That was his only objective.

Ranma blinked, 'How did Chloe find us? Mom said they shouldn't have for another week or two.' Ranma frowned, in that much time he could track plenty of leads on the bigwigs that ordered his death. If they already knew where they were, however, they could attack at any time. Ranma shook himself. 'Chloe would have told me if she used information from _those_ people.'

'To be safe, I had better ask her about it. If something happened to Mother like Akane… Akane!' Ranma stood ramrod straight, his eyes wide. 'I totally forgot about her in all the confusion! I've got to see how she is doing.'

The decision made, Ranma tested his legs, quickly coming to the conclusion that they were still weak; too drained to roof-hop. Huffing, Ranma leaned back. 'Not everyone travels by rooftop. There has to be another way. I don't think Mom has a car and I couldn't drive anyway. Bicycle would be just about as impractical.' Frowning, Ranma concentrated his weary mind. It didn't want to cooperate with him. Blinking, Ranma snapped his fingers. 'The bus,' he thought with a smile.

Changing into a spare set of inconspicuous street clothes, Ranma walked to his mother's room.

"Come now, it'll be our little secret." Ranma overheard his mother's voice.

Ranma quickly knocked on the door. The last thing he wanted was for them to think he was eavesdropping.

"Ranma, I believe I said we wanted to speak alone." Ranma heard the steel lined response through the closed door.

Instinctively, Ranma brought up his hands despite the fact that no one could see his placating actions.

"Sorry, I just wanted to tell you I'm going to check on Akane." Ranma said, quickly leaving before he got into any more trouble.

"Ok, just try to stay inconspicuous." Ranma heard his mother's answer as he quickly left as fast as possible.

Walking out the door, Ranma realized that the neighborhood appeared familiar. They were still in the Nerima ward though he wasn't sure where. Scanning the area, he noticed a bus just pulling up to the corner. He quickly walked to the stop, finding it rather crowded despite the late time.

Pressing into the large crowd, Ranma realized the people didn't take much notice of him. They had to be a fair distance away from the Tendo dojo for people not to recognize him. The lack of recognition wasn't all that good as people pressed against him in their bid to enter the bus first.

It only got worse from there. He got stuck standing up, smothered between two rather large, smelly, sweat stained men with construction helmets. Four babies set the mood perfectly, their cries intensifying the headache quickly overtaking him. Glancing around, he found the women holding the little bundles of **joy, **staring with dead eyes out the window, two with earplugs firmly in place. None, of course, doing anything to appease their obnoxious charges.

When the need arose, Ranma could be very patient, but after thirty minutes of this slow sweat coated torture he wanted off **NOW** or someone was going to be hurting!

"Amacazuky hospital." The driver called, pulling the bus alongside a curb with a familiar large building in the background. 'Thank you god!' Ranma desperately loosened himself from the vice like grip the smelly bodies held him in, dashing for the exit.

Staggering out, Ranma took a deep breath. Smog permeated the air laced with a disquieting antiseptic scent emitted from the hospital. It was a little slice of heaven. 'How do people put up with that?' Ranma thought, shaking away the memory as well as he could.

Ranma blinked. 'With the Soldats looking out for me on the roofs, will I have to use the bus all the time?' Thinking back to those crying babies, Ranma shivered. 'Hell no! I've got to find a better way.

There has to be a way to move about freely without worrying about being seen.' Ranma thought as he navigated the hallways of the hospital. 'It would be great if I could be invisible, but how? It would be impossible. As soon as the light bounced off of me, people would be able to see me.' Ranma thought about that last sentence. His heightened senses processed information, if he could absorb that information and replicate it on all sides, then all that anyone should ever see is what was on the other side of him. A small smile appeared as Ranma imagined the possibilities before turning into a frown.

Something that intense would be very draining. He shivered at the sheer power the trick would take.

Ranma blinked as his feet abruptly stopped in front of a familiar emergency room. Sometimes walking on autopilot was creepy. Opening the door, he frowned when he found the bed empty. Slapping his brow, Ranma shook his head. 'Patients aren't kept in the critical care, Akane would have been moved somewhere else.'

Closing the door, Ranma looked around, trying to spot someone that might be able to help.

"Excuse me Miss?" Ranma asked, walking up to a nearby nurse.

"Hmm, oh my, it's you." The familiar looking nurse said, turning towards him with a flush on her face. "How is your friend doing?" The nurse asked smiling at him coyly.

Ranma blinked,

"Do I know you?" The nurse nearly dropped to the ground.

"Uuuhhhh, I got the blanket for your companion. Don't you remember me?" She asked incredulously, a note of pleading entering her voice.

Ranma thought about it for a moment before snapping his fingers.

"Oh yeah. Thanks for your help."

"Oh please, you needn't thank me, I was just doing my job," she said, blushing fiercely. "Did you need any more help?" She asked, her eyes hopeful while playing across his muscular body.

"Yes, do you happen to know where the patient was moved to? I haven't been back since last night," Ranma asked, nervously tugging his pigtail.

Looking distinctly put out, the nurse straightened herself quickly, turning a thousand watt smile at him.

"Certainly, I'm sure we can find her. Please follow me." The Nurse walked away, sashaying suggestively as he followed behind. Reaching a computer terminal she turned around with a sultry smile, fully expecting his eyes to be glued to her backside. Instead she found the man of her dreams calmly waiting, meeting her eyes, lacking the heavy lust she yearned to find there. 'Damn.'

Remembering she was supposed to be helping him with something far more mundane then what she desired, she forced her eyes away from the stormy blue eyes waiting for her patiently. Giggling lightly, she logged into the patient database.

"What was the patient's name again?" She asked a little exasperated that her display didn't interest the hunky young man. She pouted as she remembered that other girl; she would be hard pressed to compete with her. That girl didn't flaunt it, but given the right attire she would be drop dead gorgeous. It made her feel old. 'I'm only 26 damnit!'

"Akane Tendo." Ranma answered, uncertain as to why the nurse's mood seemed to shift wildly. Ranma mentally shrugged his shoulders, must be that time of the month.

"It looks like she is in room 5032. That's four floors up from here." The nurse said, taking out a little slip of paper and writing the number on it before handing it to Ranma.

"Thank you Miss." Ranma replied, taking the paper before moving towards the elevator without a backward glance. He would have used the stairs as they were faster, but he needed to conserve strength.

He never noticed the woman gape at him, a soulful desire crossing her face shifting to crushing resignation as he walked away.

'I thought I was at least somewhat pretty, but… but I'm not even worth a second glance.' She thought miserably.

Completely unaware he had just caused a nurse to go into chronic depression, Ranma made his way to the elevator and up to the indicated room.

It wasn't difficult to find, it was right next to the elevators.

The door was slightly ajar so he let himself in silently, in case anyone was asleep.

He found two beds and a chair with a small low-lit lamp sitting next to it on a stand.

One bed held Akane, asleep with the heart monitor attached to a finger, beeping steadily in the background. The other bed held a tub attached to Soun's arm. It looked to be connected to a bag partially filled with blood.

In the chair sat Kasumi. He was surprised to find her still awake and attentive. It had to be nearly 11:00 PM.

She appeared to be trying to read a book; trying being the key word. Blood-shot eyes squinted at the text, apparently reading a few words before putting the book down to check on Akane and the heart monitor.

Ashamed, Ranma realized that he had stood watching Kasumi's nervous antics for a couple of minutes without announcing himself.

"Kasumi," He whispered so as not to disturb the others. He could only imagine that they had difficulty getting to sleep too.

The girl jumped, dropping her book to the ground.

"Ranma!" Ranma gasped as he was engulfed in a bear hug. "I was so worried, Akane was hurt and then you disappeared without telling us where you had gone. I thought that those men came after you again." She sobbed, crying into his shoulder.

Ranma was beginning to wonder if he would ever get used to situations like this. They seemed to be happening far too frequently… like daily.

"It's all right, Kasumi. I'm sorry I didn't leave a note. I shouldn't have caused you more problems. I realized last night that if those men were after me, they might have gone after my parents too. I was so worried I completely forgot to explain before I left." Ranma finished, rubbing Kasumi's back. From past experience, Ranma found the action very soothing for Kasumi.

Ranma was rewarded for his efforts as the sound of tears slowly faded away. When they completely stopped, Kasumi hesitantly spoke again.

"I'm sorry Ranma, it was selfish of me. I should have known that you would only leave if there was something just as important you needed to protect."

"You aren't being selfish, Kasumi. You were worried about me. It means a lot to know that someone as special as you would worry about my safety."

Kasumi blushed lightly against Ranma's shirt.

"Are your parents all right?" She asked, somehow feeling pleasantly uncomfortable with Ranma's words.

"They are..." Ranma hesitated, eyes going unfocused as he unwillingly relived the previous night. "A lot of things happened last night. Things I'm not ready to talk about right now." Ranma whispered so even Kasumi could barely hear him. He was surprised when Kasumi renewed her hug with vigor.

"Its all right Ranma, you must have been through many difficult ordeals. If you ever need someone to listen, I'll be here for you," Kasumi said, trying to offer comfort even though she desperately needed some herself.

"Thank you, Kasumi, I'll remember that always… If you ever need help, just call me. Call me and I'll be there as fast as I can." Ranma finished, slowly disengaging himself before looking around the room. Spotting a pen, he grabbed it off the counter. He took the piece of paper the nurse gave him, ripping a section off before writing on it.

"This is my new cell phone number. I know this is going to sound odd, but please memorize it and then burn the paper. Do not give this to anyone else. I think I've gotten myself into something that may cause those with knowledge about me trouble. The last thing I ever want to see is you in more pain."

Kasumi nodded, taking the piece of paper and holding it to her heart. It meant a lot to her. Ranma trusted her with this. He also promised to help her whenever she needed it. He hadn't said when Akane needed it or Father and Nabiki, but when she needed it. It seemed to touch something deep within her, an unfamiliar feeling swelled in her chest.

"How is Akane doing?" Ranma asked, moving to stand on the other side of said girl's bed.

Distracted by the powerful yet not unpleasant feelings, Kasumi didn't realize Ranma had moved for a moment. Blinking a few times, worry overcame her as she focused on her little sister.

"They said that she was going to be alright. She lost more blood than they thought. So far Father has been the only donor they have been able to find. She should have a lot more, but his blood has stabilized her for the moment." Kasumi allowed a small giggle to escape. "Father's been eating as dozens of sugar cookies and bottles of juice to make more blood for Akane. I didn't have the heart to tell him that they wouldn't help significantly." Kasumi's tender gaze rested on Akane's pale form. She idly brushed a stray strand of hair away from her sister's brow. "She will be weak for a few weeks until she has recuperated." Her features crumbled as she remembered the rest of the news. "I'm afraid Akane has not woken up since last night."

Ranma nodded, critically looking down on Akane, her flimsy green hospital gown doing little to hide her pale features; closer in color to the sheets around her than the healthy color usually present. It may have been a trick of the lighting, but even her hair appeared pale. He had never seen Akane this way; not during any of their misadventures. It frightened him; a single bullet sent the built like a brick tomboy crashing to the ground like a porcelain doll.

After all of his recent experiences he was well aware of his mortality. A single well placed bullet could cause him to fall instantly. Hell, he had already been shot, damn lucky that the shooter was so shaken he couldn't aim straight.

He never wanted to go through that again. Unfortunately, destiny had a tendency to express ship his life to Hell by bullet train. He knew it, and knew that his fate had already twisted far beyond his imagination. But he would stand up to it. He would take revenge for his Father. Perhaps not all of the Soldats, but those responsible would suffer before he allowed them the blessing that cold unfeeling death would grant them.

Ranma shook himself; that thought was not like him. His brow lowered in determination. Like him or not, it was his reality now. He had stepped onto a long cold path and he would not deviate from it. There would be a reckoning in the world and he would usher it in.

"Ranma? What is troubling you?" Kasumi's question dragged Ranma out of his dark contemplation. His eyes softened as they took in Kasumi's worried expression.

"Nothing, Kasumi. There are just a lot of things I've had to take care of recently." He said, his voice trailing off.

"I'm sorry to ask, but have you heard from Nabiki recently?" Ranma's eyes lowered. "Oh… I haven't been able to reach her in the dorms since a few days ago. I hope she is all right."

"She did call me," Kasumi's eyes shot up to his face, relief in her eyes. "I think she will be… indisposed… for awhile." Kasumi missed the cold permeating his voice, so happy that she believed her sister was at least all right. Before she thought to ask for specifics, Ranma continued. "It probably isn't safe for me to visit too long. If they think I have an attachment here they may come for you. I'll try to stay in touch." Ranma took one last glance at Akane's still form sadly.

Kasumi stared up at Ranma, concerned about the swirl of dark emotions covering his face.

"Give her my best wishes when she wakes up." Kasumi nodded slowly.

"I'll do that."

"And take good care of yourself too." Ranma finished, affectionately patting Kasumi on the head.

'Why did he/I do that?' They both thought as Ranma headed for the door, Kasumi left speechless.

* * *

Quickly exiting the hospital, Ranma noticed there was still quite a crowed waiting for the bus. 'Most likely one of the shifts just changed at the hospital.' Ranma's thoughts were corroborated as most were still wearing hospital scrubs.

Ranma was loathed to experience another crammed bus session. There was that trick he had thought of earlier and it was also night, but… his ki reserves were far too low to attempt either.

Sighing Ranma started towards the waiting line of people for the next bus.

* * *

By the time Ranma returned home, he was not a happy camper. It was not nearly as bad as the first time; there were only two screaming brats and a doctor with a scalpel eyeing him with a manic gleam in his eyes. He had sworn to learn that trick as soon as his ki levels regenerated. Besides, now that he thought about it, that trick might come in handy in the near future. In search of revenge, invisibility could be invaluable.

Turning away from the departing bus, Ranma headed up to his house. He was rather surprised when the front door opened before he reached it. Stopping short, he watched Chloe wide eyed and blushing scarlet walking jerkily away.

He had never seen Chloe blushing, not even a little. Maybe there was something wrong with her? Ranma reached out to see if she was alright, but was interrupted.

"Ranma, I'm glad to see you back safely." Nodoka calmly said, placing a restraining hand on his shoulder. "We just finished our little discussion and Chloe was on her way home."

Ranma looked up at his Mother puzzled, "Are you sure she is going to be alright? I've never seen her so out of it."

Nodoka only stood with a knowing smile.

* * *

old author's end notes: Don't get me wrong, the interaction between Kasumi and Ranma was never planned. I never anticipated Kasumi's budding interest in Ranma. It has been said before that stories have a way of guiding themselves. This will remain a RanmaXChloe fic, but this little quirk leads to complications. There will be a RanmaXKasumi interaction; the scene in mind is too vivid not too. Ordinarily I wouldn't hesitate to add the pairing, but there is one problem. I have given the vote for pairings to the readers already. That means to make any changes to the pairing I will have to get permission from the readers.

So your choices are thus, Ranma also gets with Kasumi or Kasumi dies. This is not a call for additional reviews. I have yet to see a fanfiction reader that has wanted Kasumi hurt, myself included. This is just to get permission to continue on with the additional pairing. The vote will end at the posting of the next chapter some two weeks hence. You are free to offer other suggestions, but be warned a friendship won't cut it.

New author's end notes: Thanks to weebee, I've figured out another means of implementing the story without a pairing. Thank you everyone that responded.

brindani


	15. The Plot Thickens

Author's notes: Well I was a little surprised by how things turned out for the vote. I didn't expect anyone to vote for Kasumi's death. What is more surprising to me is that more than one person did it too. After a long chat with my conscious… I mean Weebee, I've come up with something that will allow for what I have planned without death or pairing. There is further information regarding this in the end notes.

As always, thank god for prereaders. Both James Axelrad and Weebee have been invaluable in hunting my stupid errors and beating them with a very large stick.

On with the story. Now with fifty percent fewer semicolons! Thanks Gangsta Spanksta.

Disclaimer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 15: The Plot Thickens

Comfortably relaxed, Altena reviewed the recent letter from Chloe, casting a critical eye over the neatly written script.

'Things are not quite going to plan. The fools did take the bait by ordering Ranma's death. It's too bad for them that they orchestrated their own the second they signed the order. Such a shame, the inflexible men seized my ruse, allowing rumors regarding Ranma's injured condition to cloud their judgment. If they had bothered to look a little deeper, they would have realized Ranma's accelerated healing.

They also used the Tendo girl just as intended by gathering information in their attempt to take Ranma out. Ranma passed the final test during the resulting confrontation. They underestimated my prodigy.' Altena smiled, leaning down to move the pawn with one hand the last step forward, replacing it with a black queen. 'The greatest Noir to ever exist will soon be initiated under my care. My little Chloe and Ranma shall form the ultimate team.

I can already feel the bond growing from Chloe's letter.' Altena frowned. 'Still, Nodoka was supposed to be killed as well. I've waited years to avenge my beloved Mio. I'll just have to be patient a little longer." Altena smiled again as she gently set Chloe's letter on the table.

"It would be the supreme revenge to supplant Nodoka in Ranma's heart." Altena pondered Nodoka's face as she gently led her precious son down the path of death and killing. She allowed herself only a moment to wallow in the feeling of perfect revenge before stopping herself with an iron will. She had far too many things to do to simply lose herself in dreams. "The important objectives were achieved. They released Ranma's killing spirit without implicating me. The rest can come later.' Altena thought with a satisfied smile, returning to work on making her dreams a reality.

* * *

In a distant ancient castle far removed from the Manor, sat three men. The room was drafty, a chilled wind blowing through the large windows, yet no fire was stocked in the fireplace. The few still alive that knew these individuals would be shocked to find the lack of exotic wine. The three simply faced each other with grim faces. 

"The Tendo girl failed."

"Yes, she has already paid the price for her failure."

"Perhaps, but the results surrounding her death… are troubling."

"Some thirty-one of our best men killed in the span of less than an hour."

"The security cameras confirm the boy had a companion, though we never received a clear image of either, I can only speculate it was Altena's girl, Chloe."

"It would make sense; Altena appears to be trying to set the two as a pair."

"There is the other troubling result of this… raid."

"You are referring to the hole in her office."

"Yes I am. The tools necessary to bore a hole through reinforced steel that thick are bulky, difficult to move. There was no sign of any such equipment."

"He must have used other means to force his way out of the building."

"The initial analysis indicates that it was burned out."

"Do you realize the energy required to burn a man-sized hole all the way out of the building?"

"I do, but it remains the only explanation."

"There were no security cameras in that room to corroborate that statement. It is impossible for a human to do something like that. If he did, he would have to be super-human."

"This is all Altena's fault. She led us by the nose, leaking false information concerning his supposed injury. It has caused us to error in our judgment."

"Very true, but we must look forward. How shall we proceed?"

"We need more information. Even if he is not super human, this man that turns into a girl has skills that outshine anything we have ever seen. Given other circumstances, he would be a perfect candidate for our purposes."

"Circumstances do not allow for that possibility. It is unfortunate that the Nabiki girl did not survive the blast. She had a direct association with the boy. We could use her insights to further exploit his weaknesses."

"If he is indeed superhuman, he must also have weaknesses. We should freeze all action against him and gather more information to find them."

"It is agreed then, we need more information about this man. Subterfuge may be our greatest ally in this conflict."

"I believe that may not be necessary," the statement garnered the others' attention swiftly. "We are not using all of our resources here."

"We've used everything at our disposal." Argued one while the other gave him a considering look.

"What have we not used?"

"There is only one enemy here that is coordinating their efforts to circumvent our power."

"Altena." The other two nodded in agreement.

"Yes, through her office, she has attained power equal to our own. If she becomes the high priestess, she will surpass our influence. If Noir were never to come about, Altena would lose all of her vaunted power. She would be cast down the ladder she forcefully ascended."

"True, but how is the question? Each of the candidates for Noir is far stronger then any professional assassin we currently employ. They can not be eliminated with a simple hit. We've learned this truth at great expense to our resources."

"Exactly, each set of Noir has passed their trials up until now without difficulty. Even the pair left in the dark has pushed passed every obstacle placed before them. But if each Noir member is superior, what would come about if they were pitted against each other early?"

"You can not be serious. Tradition…"

"There is a precedence." The statement left the others speechless. "Long ago it became necessary to initiate the final trials early. As was done long ago, we can say that the Soldats' need for their hands has become sufficient to warrant proceeding to the final trial immediately."

"How would you do this? One set has not even been enlightened into their situation?"

"Perhaps not, but they are avidly seeking that enlightenment. They have scoured the land for the smallest mention of our name. I believe that a hit on this Ranma Saotome would warrant full enlightenment."

His companions nodded reluctantly. The attempt would stretch their power beyond their authority. It risked everything, yet the potential benefits were just as great.

* * *

Back in France, Kirika and Mireille relaxed after their long journey. Their newest acquisition was held down by a rock on the pool table. 

"The contract said it was witnessed by a man of the Soldats. That means when the Mafia first formed, the Soldats were there to witness it. Just how old is our enemy?" Mireille wondered, leaning back in her chair. She had hoped that the contract would be more enlightening. God knew what they had gone through to retrieve it.

Beep, beep.

Mireille glanced down at the computer, happily informing her that they had a job offering. Sitting up, Mireille scrolled through the listing, professionally evaluating the new job.

"Looks like someone wants a hit on a corrupt judge," Mireille said, scanning through the information in the email. "The judge is letting corrupt policemen go with a light slap on the wrist. It's causing a lot of pain to the people they hurt. Hmmm, what do you think, Kirika?" Mireille asked, leaning back in her chair again as Kirika stared out into the city from their window.

"It sounds good." She answered quietly.

"Yes, but research always comes first. We have to get all the details before accepting."

Beep, beep

"Looks like we're popular today. Let's see." Mireille sat up, lightly maneuvering the mouse to navigate to the next email. When the window pulled up, she blinked critically several times.

Kirika raised her head when Mireille did not elaborate on what the newest job entailed. Walking over, she looked past Mireille's shoulder. She blinked as she noticed the sender.

"From the Soldats." Kirika softly read aloud. Kirika's voice jogged Mireille's deep contemplation to the present.

"This is the first time they have made direct contact. It must mean something has changed." Mireille said, her mind racing to come up with possible explanations.

"Yes." Kirika answered quietly.

Mireille clicked onto the email, scanning through the document.

"What does it say?" Kirika asked as she attempted to read over her shoulder without success.

"It looks like the Soldats have separate heads of power. The email claims to originate from one of those leaders. They are requesting a hit."

"They are requesting a hit from us?"

"Apparently they are. The target's name is Ranma Saotome. He or she lives in Japan."

"He or she?" Kirika asked, curiosity peaked.

"Well it could be that there are two people with the same name. I'm doubting its one person. There is no way that make-up could account for the drastic difference in weight and balance not to mention proportions," Mirreille answered, critically looking through the attachments.

Kirika nodded, examining the two pictures attached to the email. One of a very well developed young man and the other of a short busty girl with flaming red hair, both sporting a pigtail.

"It says that we will receive the reward if we successfully kill either of these two people."

"What is the reward?" Kirika asked.

Mireille scrolled to the bottom before her eyes widened.

"Full disclosure about why the other section of the Soldats are attempting to assassinate us. And the book we have been trying to obtain." Mireille whispered.

Kirika blinked. Everything handed to them on a silver platter after just one hit? Kirika's brow lowered as she critically stared at the pictures. Why did the girl with the flaming red hair look so familiar?

* * *

While Ranma was a hot topic around the world, back in Japan night was blanketing the land. A brisk chilled wind filled the air sending anyone caught in it scurrying for home. 

In the middle of the city walked a cloaked figure, unaffected by the chilled wind's icy touch. Discreetly the figure entered an alley. Within stood a gaunt man, nervously fingering a bushy mustache as he fearfully looked around.

"What did you find?" Chloe asked from behind him.

The man squeaked, ducking for cover. Opening one eye, he looked up at Chloe's calm face in terror. The stark terror receded as he recognized the girl. He stood clutching his chest.

"Don't do that!" He replied with indignation, nearly squeaking as the adrenalin rushed through his body.

"What did you find?" Chloe repeated, her words unchanging, but she now held a throwing knife in plain view. The man eyed the knife warily.

"It… it's dangerous asking around about Yakuza business." He said, eyes constantly darting to the ends of the alley. "They don't like people nosing around. They've been especially edgy with all the recent assassinations. Anyone caught snooping is killed on the spot." The man stammered, doing a miserable job appearing that he wasn't scared to death. "But me, I'm one step ahead, I've got sources on the inside," he licked his lips, eyeing the knife again. "They said there ain't anything happening tonight. Now, where is my payment?" The man nervously asked, as the knife became more conspicuous. The sweat beaded along his brow under the dispassionate gaze directed at him.

"I expect much more next time. You are paid to report their movements, not excuses." Chloe said using her other hand to toss a small bag of gold coins.

Chloe watched the man's eyes go wide with greed. He easily plucked the bag out of the air before darting down the alley, disappearing into the darkness. Chloe would have killed him a long time ago, but the rat had proven useful in the past. He had ears in high places of the underworld.

Shaking her head, Chloe started to run in the opposite direction. The man's prattle had delayed her from an important meeting. Climbing up the nearest ladder, Chloe started jumping across rooftops. Her intense training to keep abreast of Ranma had made it easier to do so even with some of the houses that were further and/or higher up.

As she progressed, the buildings became higher and higher. With a final leap, Chloe landed on the agreed upon high-rise. By habit, Chloe scanned the area. Unsurprisingly, there were no enemies. If there had been, they would have been forcibly ejected by her companion long before Chloe's arrival. On the opposite end of the roof, she spotted a familiar red pigtail rocking back and forth.

Shaking her head, Chloe walked behind the other girl.

"Good evening, Chloe." The girl greeted, not bothering to turn around.

By this time Chloe was well accustomed to Ranma knowing just where she was no matter how quiet she approached.

"Good evening." Chloe replied, watching as Ranma carefully examined the building before them. "So what is it going to be tonight? Corrupt politician, Yakuza din of evil or basic scouting for the standard damsel in distress?" Chloe asked as she casually sat next to the pigtailed girl along the edge of the building.

"What do you think?" Ranma asked neutrally.

"Ordinarily, being Wednesday, I would say breaking up a Yakuza meeting to pump them for information. However, my sources indicate nothing is happening tonight. Our recent activity has them hiding."

Ranma chuckled. "You know me too well. Yakuza din of evil it is."

"Didn't I just say there wasn't one operating tonight?" Chloe asked wondering if Ranma's hearing was going.

"Oh I heard you. My source, however, says there is a big function featuring three elite Yakuza members tonight. Sort of a playboy bunny convention with a little business on the side."

"Wait, my source never indicated anything. They sit right next to the Yakuza bosses. He would have caught wind of anything that big."

"You mean the weasel?" Ranma asked. Chloe blinked.

"How do you know about him?" Chloe asked in return, eyes narrowed.

"From what my source says, they have been nailing down leaks left and right. Your man was high on the suspect list. He probably will be dead before the end of the week."

"What source are you referring to? Are you using your Mother's old contacts?" Chloe asked curiously.

"No, I made this contact on my own. They are very well connected."

"Who is it?" Chloe asked, having a contact like that could be very handy as it appeared her current one was about to become fish-food.

Ranma turned to her with a wide smile placing a finger before her lips.

"That person's identity is…" Chloe leaned in, interested to know who this mystery person was. "…a secret." Chloe's eyes narrowed, letting a small scowl sneak past her mask. She gave the redhead a long dark look as Ranma held her sides laughing.

"Sorry couldn't help it." Ranma said, slowly calming down. "The person _is_ very secretive, however. I'll ask if they want to meet with you," Ranma answered, regaining her composure.

Chloe restrained the impulse to hit Ranma. She might deserve it after that stunt, but killing Ranma by shoving her off of the building was on Altena's serious no-no list.

"So where is this convention going to be held?" Chloe asked, trying to divert the conversation.

Ranma gave her most insufferable smirk before pointing straight ahead. "In the basement of that building. They've been discreetly hiring hookers to play the part of the bunnies. In all, there should be fifty bunnies, twenty professional killers, and three very high ranking Yakuza. We just have to wait for the party to start rolling."

Chloe shook her head. Whoever Ranma's contact, they were well informed.

"So when is it suppose to start?"

"In about thirty minutes." Ranma said calmly.

"What do we need to set-up?"

"Nothing, everything has been taken care of." Ranma answered, lightly tapping an old fashioned harpoon gun and backpack laying next to her.

"Than why did you want me to come so early?" Chloe asked, her cheeks reddening. After the _talk_ Ranma's mother had given her, it was difficult not to. When Ranma was male, she could hardly look at him straight in the face without going scarlet.

"I just wanted to talk, that's all." Ranma answered, continuing to examine the building across the way.

"What did you want to talk about?" Chloe asked, relaxing her stiff posture. Hadn't they already discussed everything in the past few weeks?

"How is Altena's search going?"

Chloe's red cheeks died away. The redhead only wanted to talk about Altena's progress? That was much less personal than she had feared.

"She is looking into who arranged the hit. Even with her large reservoir of resources, it is difficult. It's likely one of the heads of the Soldats with how elusive the trail has become."

"I see, please thank her for me in your next letter."

Chloe turned to look at the pigtailed youth again. 'How does she know I communicate with Altena through letters?' She wondered. Ranma appeared to have far more information then she should. Personal things like that should not be known to anyone aside from the currier, Chloe, and Altena herself. Perhaps this was something to report to Altena? Chloe shook her head, she had better postpone mentioning it to gather more facts.

"I see your ki training is coming along well." Ranma mentioned. Chloe's head whipped around. There was another thing that she wasn't suppose to know about. This 'source' might know too much.

"Did your source inform you of that too?" She asked quietly.

"Didn't have to, you're practically glowing with excess ki. I'll have to show you how to store it and create a reserve. You've done a marvelous job of developing more ki, but you're shedding it nearly as fast as it is created. If it keeps up like that, you'll be a veritable floodlight of whatever emotion you happen to be feeling. Not a good trait in this business." Ranma commented absently.

Chloe was startled. She had strived so hard to make more ki to keep up with Ranma, she never realized she was doing more harm then good. 'Perhaps I should have asked Ranma first.' She thought, a little perturbed she couldn't do it on her own.

"We can set aside some time on Sundays. That's a slow day for rescuing damsels in distress." Ranma finished, chuckling to herself at the imagery.

"That wasn't what you wanted to talk to me about, was it?" Chloe asked.

"It was one thing I wanted to discuss, but it wasn't what I really wanted to speak to you about."

"What then?"

"I've been thinking lately." Ranma stopped as Chloe gave her an incredulous stare. "Don't give me that, even I like to stop and think, especially after recent events." The playful credulity left, replaced with a hard pessimistic expression. "Events haven't been meshing recently. Did you know who sent those men to attack me?" Ranma asked, apparently changing the subject. Chloe shook her head. Altena had told her the results of their assault on the building and the damage to the room Ranma infiltrated. The room held no person, only some blood and a very large hole. She could only assume that Ranma had literally vaporized the body.

"It was Nabiki." Chloe thought about the name for a moment. It sounded familiar. Back from the time that she had first read Ranma's profile. 'That sounds like… yes the middle Tendo daughter… wait.'

"Nabiki?" Chloe asked. 'That girl should not have had any connections with the Soldats much less the power to organize the hits on Ranma.'

"Yes, Nabiki. Do you remember when we first met?" Chloe was again jarred by the apparent random jump of topic.

"Yes…"

"When you first arrived you carried two letters. Were those letters from Altena?" Ranma asked, acting suspiciously quiet and subdued.

Chloe blinked. She remembered the letters. That felt like so long ago. Chloe's brows lowered, 'Why would Ranma want to know about them?'

"They did come from Altena." Chloe answered, unsure where Ranma was leading.

"Do you know what they contained?" Chloe had to strain to hear Ranma.

"Of course not, Altena didn't want me to read them so I didn't."

"I see." Ranma's voice grew distant as he continued. "Did you know that the one given to Nabiki offered her a position within the Soldats headquarters?"

Chloe's eyes opened wide. "Why would Altena do that?" she whispered to herself.

"Yes, my thoughts exactly, why would Altena offer someone off the street such an opportunity within the Soldats?"

"This Nabiki person seemed very intelligent; perhaps Altena thought she would be a benefit to the Soldats." Chloe answered.

"Why directly and why so high within the ranks? Surely anyone with potential would have joined the Soldats in a lower position to affirm their loyalties."

"I…" 'The Soldats don't recruit often; they comprise members directly descended from those survivors of the disaster so long ago. Any who were recruited were usually through marriage and they always started at the bottom.

Chloe remained silent for a long time. Ranma allowed the disquieting peace to blanket them until she thought it wise to continue.

"I'm guessing Altena wouldn't tell you even if you asked, would she?" Ranma questioned.

"She has no reason. If she wants me to know something she will tell me. That is what matters, she tells me everything I need to know."

"I see, judging from your reactions since we met, she doesn't appear to think you need to know a lot of things. She didn't tell you about my Mother, the note to Nabiki, or that I was to be a Noir candidate."

"She did tell me that you were to be apart of Noir." Chloe challenged not liking where this was going.

"Yes she did, but only after I arrived at the Manor."

"How…?"

"I'm more observant then you think I am, Chloe."

"I do not want to discuss this anymore."

"That's fine, I just wanted to mention it. Just keep the matter in mind." Ranma said, turning away from Chloe. She felt isolated. Ranma was questioning Altena. Perhaps not directly, but questioning her motives none the less. If it were any other person, she would kill them on the spot, not giving it another thought. But this was Ranma, even if she tried, she would be unsuccessful. Even with the slight, she couldn't bring herself to try. What was worse, what Ranma said made too much sense to dismiss out of hand.

ring

Ranma fished through her clothes, pulling out a cell phone.

"Yes? The entertainment has started to arrive? Good, thank you for all of your hard work." Ranma hung up the phone, taking a deep breath before stowing it back into her pocket.

"Was that your contact?" Chloe asked, relieved her troubling thoughts had been interrupted.

"Yes, its show-time." Ranma said, standing up with the harpoon gun and a large smirk spread across her face.

* * *

Author's end notes: Hee, hee, things are going to start to heat-up. I won't say much, but the next chapter will mix a tad more humor to the story. 

As to the vote:

Kasumi dies: 10

Kasumi lives: 17

I'm very surprised. This actually came close. If the vote for Kasumi's death had won, it would have happened. As there is an alternative to the pairing, that is what will happen. I would say what I intended, but as one reader has mentioned, that would be a spoiler and didn't want to hear it.

brindani


	16. Bunny Hop pt1

Author's notes: I have not had this much fun making a chapter in a very long time. I had a hard time stopping myself from laughing. Anyway, as always, weebee and James Axelrad really helped knock a lot of errors out for me. This wouldn't have looked nearly as good without them.

Disclaimer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 16: Bunny Hop part1

Raising the harpoon gun, Ranma pulled the trigger. The anchor launched, firmly striking above a window across the small alley. Ranma tied the other end around a nearby large cooling system. She gave a test tug on the line before nodding her head. Strapping her backpack on, Ranma pulled out two thick pieces of rope from her pocket, tossing one to Chloe.

"Kowabunga!" Ranma shouted, running off the roof, Chloe watched as the other girl appeared to hang in midair. At the last second, she wrapped the hand held rope around the main line, zipping across the small alleyway before easily shattering the window.

"Kowabunga?" Chloe asked the air around her. "What was that about?" Shrugging her shoulders, Chloe dashed forward, making sure that her rope was around the support line well before jumping off. Launching through the window was easy as Ranma had already shattered it.

Chloe took a look around the newly revealed hallway. It held a myriad of doors, each labeled with a little rusted number. The cracked maroon paint coating the walls revealed multicolor array of previous attempts at painting. In all, it looked like a run down apartment building.

"You sure this is the place?" Chloe asked critically.

"Looks can be deceiving. Some time ago this really was an apartment building. When the gangs started to appear, they lost all of their business and were forced to close. The Yakuza snapped it up dirt cheap. They left the main section untouched to throw off suspicion. Most of the changes are in the basement." Ranma answered, silently cleaning up the glass their abrupt entry left on the floor, throwing it out the window. Strategically she placed the worn drab blinds to hide the broken window. Taking a deep forlorn breath, Ranma started to shuffle through the small backpack. "Now, if you would please change into this, we can proceed." Ranma said, handing Chloe a bundle of cloth. Confused, Chloe peaked into the bundle before flinching.

"You've got to be kidding me." She said, eyes narrowing.

"Hey, don't get me wrong, I certainly would prefer a different way too, but this is the only way to infiltrate without risking harm to innocent lives. Besides, do you really think I'm going to enjoy wearing one?" Ranma asked as she pulled out a similar bundle from the backpack. With a distasteful expression, the pigtailed girl ducked into one of the abandoned apartments. 'If I were alone I could use the invisibility technique. On second thought, I probably wouldn't even be able to do that. I can only hold it for five minutes. The damn thing sucks ki like Picolette at an all you can drink wine competition.'

Chloe simply sighed, Ranma had a point. The pigtailed assassin had to have thought of every possible alternative. The security must be tight. The Yakuza really were taking notice of their recent hijinks.

Walking into a separate room, Chloe leaned against the closed door, looking down at her bundle with a dirty look before sighing. 'I swear I'll pay Ranma back a thousand fold for this humiliation,' Lowering her head in resignation, Chloe started getting dressed, consigned to her fate.

* * *

"Come on Chloe, you know you can't look any more ridiculous than I do," Ranma said exasperatedly, smoothing small creases from her own form fitting black bunny suit. She sighed as she traced the jagged lavender marks that covered her chest.

"Damn, how do girls deal with these things?" Ranma mumbled as she shifted her attention to the long pantyhose riding up her legs for the tenth time since she put on the outfit five minutes ago. Turning back to the door she felt Chloe in, Ranma started to get annoyed by her companion's reluctance. "Our window of opportunity is shrinking by the second here." Ranma said, rolling her eyes. "I will never look at a bunny girl the same way again." She swore under her breath. 'A month and a half ago I was raising hell over wearing stupid stuff like this and now I don't have any other choice. Life sucks.' She thought absently as she paid close attention to arranging the loose fitting bright red sash around her waist which artistically concealed both her knives and gun.

"This is undignified. I will not do it dressed like this." Chloe's muffled voice echoed through the door.

"You're preaching to the choir here. If there was absolutely any other way to get this done, I would have thought of it. Trust me I've been trying for two days now." Ranma drawled as she started to tap her foot impatiently.

"No."

"If you don't come out right now, I'll have to come in." There was a slight stir on the other side of the door. "Don't think I can't. You know me better then that." Ranma heard a heavy sigh before the doorknob twisted.

Stepping back, Ranma waited as the door slowly opened to reveal Chloe glaring daggers at her.

Ranma let off a long low whistle as Chloe walked out in high heals. She looked gorgeous, her curve hugging velvet suit shifting to a tight black lace across her midriff, adding a hint of mystique. Both her bowtie and ears were violet setting off her hair well. The cotton ball on her bottom attracted Ranma's eyes to her firm posterior. All in all, Chloe made a _good _bunny.

Chloe's glare kicked up a notch when she noticed the extra attention.

Ranma looked away, but not before noticing the slightest touch of blush on her cheeks as she examined Ranma in return. Ranma hid a small grin, 'Chloe really is pretty.'

"If you ever tell Altena…" Ranma stopped cold in her tracks. 'God, I hadn't thought of that.' She turned around, ignoring the threatening eyes directed at her.

"How about we make a deal right now? Everything that happens today dies with us. I don't know if you noticed, but I'm wearing the exact same thing and I'm a guy damn it! How do you think I feel about all this? I certainly don't want the Tendos knowing or, heaven forbid, my Mother." Ranma finished with a shudder at what Nodoka would do if she ever found out.

"Agreed, none of this ever leaves this place." Chloe said, nodding her head. "Now let's get this over with." Chloe finished, walking past Ranma.

"Good, hurry up, your stage fright has made us late." Ranma said as she ran down the corridor to a door marked stairs. Whipping the door open, she started to hop down each flight, miraculously not wrinkling her suit as she went. Chloe was only steps behind her as she too leapt down the stairs. Ranma had a hell of a time keeping her mind on task as each landing caused interesting things to shake on Chloe's body.

"If there are stairs leading down, why couldn't we have just used them and avoided the embarrassment?" Chloe demanded, oblivious to what she was inadvertently doing to Ranma as she matched the pigtailed girl stride for stride.

"Trust me, I would have if they continued, but these stairs end on the ground level. Past that, they're cemented in. There is only one elevator that goes to the basement and the person manning it has to radio ahead to have it brought down. If they ever caught wind that the elevator had been compromised they would hightail it out of here through a backdoor setting off some rather powerful charges."

"Then why don't we use this backdoor to get in?"

"Couldn't do that either. You can't get in through the backdoor, only out. If we tried, we would just get a large explosion to the face. Like I said, they really thought of just about everything this time."

"Why are they bringing so many girls in? That is an obvious security breach." Chloe mentioned as they got closer to the ground floor.

"Because the person that organized this shindig is a big pervert. Besides, the whole idea is to enjoy themselves and for some reason having hordes of scantily clad girls hanging on their arms seems to do it for the bad guys."

Checking Ranma's face, Chloe noticed that the redhead was starting to go crimson and refused to look at Chloe. For a moment, Chloe frowned. 'Is Ranma thinking of all those girls hanging off her in guy form?' They hit the next floor and Chloe noticed Ranma distinctly look away. 'The idiot, you can't let your attention drag when you leap down stairs in high heals…' Chloe blinked as she finally noticed another result of bounding down stairs. She blushed before taking a quick glance at Ranma. 'Apparently Ranma finds me attractive. I've never seen Ranma react so strongly to any other girl in all of our adventures. Maybe…'

Ranma abruptly halted at the ground floor, derailing Chloe's thoughts as she placed a finger to her lips. Ranma set her hand next to the door her eyes creasing as she concentrated deeply. They stood there for several minutes before Ranma's eyes snapped open.

"Now." The pigtailed girl whispered as she silently opened the door just wide enough for her and Chloe to exit. Chloe noticed two guards barely rounded the corner as they came into view. 'Ranma knew. I've got to learn how she does that.'

She followed after Ranma as she quickly made her way to the lobby. Peaking around the corner revealed a group of ravishing girls looking rather bored while several uncouth guards searched each for weapons. They, of course, were taking their sweet time. 'Damn, they're taking too long. If they don't hurry the next patrol will find us.' Ranma thought nervously, watching the far corner as one of the guards continued a thorough search of a particularly busty blond.

"Redge, would you cut it out? If you don't send this lot through soon, the big boss is going to get suspicious." One of the guards said anxiously. The boss didn't like to be kept from his entertainment, and he had gone all out tonight to secure some choice girls from the street without drawing attention.

"Fine," Redge said with a parting squeeze before gesturing with his head. "Get going you lot." Turning to the front of the building, a small bit of drool escaped as he got an eyeful of the next two groups waiting for entry. "Bring in the next set." Redge called out, hands twitching.

'Damn pervert. Gives all us guys a bad reputation.' Ranma thought fingering a knife, barely holding back. Acting now would blow everything.

Some of the dismissed bunny girls sighed with relief as the man fondling them was not particularly attractive. Several of the others winked suggestively, business was business no matter the looks. Their profession had taught them that hard fact of life from a very young age.

As the last girl entered the main hall, another group followed in their wake, completely distracting the lecherous men as they started to search them. Ranma and Chloe had no problem attaching themselves to the back of the crowd as the bunny girls made their way to a large ornate elevator. As they stepped up to the elevator, a voluptuous brunet with one pink bunny ear hanging down, pressed the button. The elevator doors opened revealing a large bald black man wearing a black tux with shades. He bowed to the girls, gesturing them to enter without any sign of leering.

Most of the girls nodded in appreciation. Finding a true gentleman was an experience few of them had ever encountered. Ranma and Chloe entered the elevator with the group, without raising suspicion.

Moving to the back of the large elevator, they watched the man press a sequence of numbers from the floor panel before tapping his mike. The very peculiar pattern seemed to mean something as the doors closed, the elevator shuddered as it slowly started to descend.

They moved alongside the attractive blond that Redge found interesting. She looked at them with a large sincere smile as she absently moved her hips back and forth. Ranma had one hell of a time not watching the action as the blond's bunny suit was particularly shear.

"Hello there, my name is Samantha, actually its Akiko, but my regulars love the feel of foreign and I'm all about accommodation." She said bubbly, dissolving into giggles. "Like you two don't know how it is. I haven't seen you two around. You must be from a distant district because I'm something of a veteran myself. Been doing this all my life. Really an art I think. What section did you say you worked again?" She asked cheerily as she continued to shift about.

'Oh shoot, I didn't expect questions from the girls. The guard is starting to give us a suspicious look, I had better think of something quick. Just calm down, she said she was a veteran, that must mean she has worked a lot of different places. Come on, where have I never seen a prostitute before!? Oh, wait a minute, I know.'

"We work Nerima." Ranma said trying to exude the natural sex appeal these girls did unconsciously.

"Oh you must be really something to work there. I've always wanted to give it a try myself. Heard some fantastic stories about the buff martial artists hanging out there. I bet their endurance must be through the roof." Ranma's eyes kept dipping as Samantha started to slowly gyrate her hips. Ranma nearly jumped when Chloe accidentally jabbed her in the ribs. The sudden movement distracted Samantha from… whatever she was thinking about. "So much better then the minute men I service all night. So, are the rumors true?"

Samantha looked down at Ranma expectantly. Ranma had a bad feeling she knew exactly what rumors the girl was referring to.

"Um…" 'How the hell do I answer that one? I know! I'll describe it like one of my fights.' "…yeah, they're way stronger than a bull. They last hours against me without tiring out." Ranma answered discreetly before her eyes opened a little wider, a sick feeling twisted her stomach as the other girl squealed in delight. 'I think that was totally misinterpreted.' Ranma thought, barely repressing the urge to pound her head against the side of the elevator.

Ranma heard snickering behind her. She had a feeling she knew where that was coming from.

"Oh, that's wonderful! I think I might come down sometime myself! I've avoided it so far because of all the destruction, but for the chance to have a romp that lasts for hours? I am so there." Ranma gulped as Samantha placed a finger to her chin in thought. Ranma started to edge away thinking herself safe when the veteran prostitute pinned her with large intense blue eyes. "I've also heard of this one martial artiest named Ranma. He is suppose to be the crème de la crème. If the standard martial artist lasts hours I can only image what he is like." Ranma's mouth slowly dropped as she watched the bunny start to hold herself. "Oh god, how I'd make him scream my name.

Ranma desperately suppressed her blush as the taller, very attractive girl started to gyrate with more vigor. She could hear the giggles start to increase in frequency behind her. To her horror, she noticed many of the other girls around the elevator paying very close attention to their conversation. Some with more than friendly interest.

'Oh god! What the hell have I started?' Ranma thought, suppressing the desire to slap herself. 'If I just started prostitution in Nerima, I'm never going to live it down. How will I look Mom in the face after this? Then again she always did find attracting hordes of girls manly. If she ever found out…' Ranma went pale before shuddering as she envisioned her Mother happily setting up a rotating schedule for the prostitutes.

"Gees, how slow does this elevator go? I mean seriously its taken five minutes just to get this far and we still aren't there?" Samantha asked with a cute pout. The person in charge of the elevator shook himself from listening into the conversation with a light blush. He keyed in another pattern before the door opened.

Ranma had wondered why they weren't moving for so long. Maybe this Samantha was more than the bubble-headed blond that she let show.

The girls visibly put on their game faces. Each cheerful pranced off the elevator, acting like little girls on a sugar high from hell, moving so that all the right places bounced enticingly. Ranma was starting to have second thoughts about the plan. It might be the only way in, but how the hell was she suppose to imitate these girls? Especially when they were so distracting! Her only consolation was that Chloe seemed equally as lost.

She was about to try acting like the others when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning around she found Samantha's smiling down at her. "Why don't you hang with me for a little while? I'm sure that twenty girls can handle the big bosses for awhile. That way we'll be leaving the best for last. I've found it gives the best tips. Trade secret don't you know." Samantha said with a smile and a wink.

Ranma reluctantly nodded her head and followed after Samantha, Chloe just behind them.

Ranma was surprised by the large interior of the basement. It was domed with rich fire red carpet, large crystalline chandeliers dangling overhead providing a dim light. Ranma's heart sunk as she noticed dozens of tables around the room occupied by guards, a few letting loose as a bunny or two sat on their lap cheering them on as they drank glass after glass of booze. In the corner, furthest away from them, sat three men looking very happy as four bunnies attached to every inch of them. Ranma didn't look very closely as the guys looked way too happy.

Ranma suppressed a frown. It looked like a few of the guards were slaking off. The other seventeen were very sober hard-eyed guards only occasionally glancing at the train of shapely flesh passing them. These guys were good, they were spaced out all around the room. There was no way that even Chloe and Ranma could get to all of them before they drew the machineguns hidden below the tables. With all the bunnies literally hopping around, avoiding innocent, so to speak, casualties would be impossible.

Ranma noticed that Chloe was thinking along the same lines. Ranma gave Chloe a small shake of her head. Chloe nodded in return. Until they came up with a good plan, they would continue to follow Samantha. The older girl led them straight to a large glass punch bowl that reeked of alcohol. Next to the punch bowl was a large cooler full of ice and bottles of imported beer

"Grab a beverage and make sure not to drink any. Men think it a great turn-on if the woman is flat on her ass drunk, but you have to keep your wits. This job entails just as much acting as anything else." Samantha said just loud enough for the nearest guard not to hear. She grabbed three bottles of beer, handing one to both Ranma and Chloe. Taking off the top, Samantha appeared to take a long swig.

Shrugging their shoulders, both Chloe and Ranma opened their bottle. Neither had figured out how to hit the three marks without the guards going postal on every play-bunny in the room. For now, they would just have to play along. It did feel odd to Ranma, pretending to drink, the nasty flavor held back by her tongue.

After discreetly watering the plants nearest her, Ranma was on her third before the guard took his eyes off them.

"Looks like we have a little privacy for now. So what are the two of you doing in a place like this?" Samantha asked in a whisper between sips.

"What do you mean, isn't it obvious? We are wearing the bunny suits aren't we?" Ranma asked just as quietly while Chloe unsheathed a knife, ready to silence the girl if need be. It would be very bad if she started screaming about an intruder.

Samantha laughed lightly behind her hand.

"You have the other girls fooled with those cute getups. You certainly look good enough to pull it off too, but the way you were blushing over a simple question about sex? I think it more likely that you both are virgins." Ranma and Chloe tried to hide blushes. The reaction only made Samantha's grin broaden. "You weren't with the group when we entered. You must have come from somewhere else, likely from above. That means you either stowed away before this party started, which is unlikely as they had guards buzzing all over the place. Or you broke in above, cleaned up whatever mess you made and then walked down, avoiding the guards' patrols. That certainly is a lot to risk for some tips don't you think?"

Halfway through her explanation, both Chloe and Ranma tensed. They had been found out. Ranma's suspicions that the blond really was not dumb were confirmed. Not only that, but she was observant too.

"Oh loosen up would you? If I was going to turn you in, I would have done it in the elevator before you had the chance to make trouble for all of us. And please put that knife away, if any of the guards caught sight of it, none of us would survive the night."

Chloe hesitantly placed the knife out of sight. She would see how this latest twist turned out.

"Good, as I see it, you two are the ones causing the Yakuza all the trouble recently. It's about the only reason I can see you going through all this effort to get in here armed with knives and a gun." Both gave her a sharp look. "Oh, please, don't give me those looks. I told you I'm a professional and a veteran. You have to have sharp eyes in this trade. Some customers would just as soon cut or shoot you as take the goods. If you accommodate the wrong customer, your life ends. Even a bruise in the wrong place can spell a girl's doom in this business."

Ranma forced herself to calm down. Apparently Samantha wasn't going to call them on it.

"Now as I see it you've been doing us girls a favor. The Yakuza controls the pimps and with all the hits on them recently, some of the pimps have left for extended vacations. With them gone we can take the whole fee for our services instead of being handed a couple of hundred yen. So I think I'll help you out this once." Both Chloe and Ranma nodded.

Samantha pouted, it would have been cute given other circumstances, as it was in her well filled out bunny suit, she was drop dead gorgeous. "What we need is a distraction, something to keep the guards eyes elsewhere while you do your work." She said indicating Chloe and Ranma. She tapped her finger on her chin before a wicked grin spread across her face. Ranma did not like that look. She had been the recipient of it far too often.

"The grandson of the boss should be here tonight. If you could catch his attention you might be able to cause a distraction without the guards going postal. I'll have to warn you though, the kid is a big pervert. Usually that would work to your advantage, but tonight you'll have your hands full trying to get his attention. A lot of the girls go after him because he's a big tipper and doesn't really do anything with them. I doubt he even knows what to do aside from spouting nonsense."

'Spouting nonsense? You don't think… no it couldn't be.' Ranma shook her head. 'There was no possible way that…'

"Ha, ha, the heavens shower me with their grace this night. For I, the Blue Thunder have been blessed by the gods themselves with these beauteous damsels."

Sweat poured over her brow as Ranma slowly turned around. 'Nooooo!'

* * *

Author's end note: None of this was actually planed before writing. I was only intending the bunnies to make the job a bit more difficult. As soon as I got them into the building I started wondering just how they were going to infiltrate. The wickedest idea pop up. The rest is as you see here.

Please do not think that this fic will degenerate into busty girls hanging all over Ranma. The next chapter will finish this sequence with only a few mentions later on. Anything more would only appear if an idea comes to me or a reviewer suggests a tasteful idea of how to further use this.

Pretty much everything about the prostitutes in this chapter is based off assumptions about their occupation and movies I've seen. Any further… research… would have been… fun, but impractical.

brindani


	17. Bunny Hop pt2

Author's notes: Sorry about the delay, motivation has been at an all time low. It took nearly two months just to review this chapter three times. I'd like to thank James Axelrad and Porthos112 for showing me where a lot of work needed to be done.

Disclamer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 17: Bunny Hop pt 2

Chloe's eyebrow arched as she surveyed the room trying to discover the reason behind Ranma's panic stricken face. She followed Ranma's horrified gaze to examine the newest arrival as he stepped from the elevator. The youth's haughty upright demeanor portrayed a regal bearing of a proud noble lineage. To her, he seemed to be roughly their age though the old fashioned kendo uniform he wore made him appear a little older in the low light. The outfit appeared quite out of place given the heavy mix of sensuality and alcohol that saturated the air.

Chloe frowned as this same boy had three girls hanging off of him. Even given their profession, the three were drastically underdressed. More cloth went into the bunny ears than the rest of their costumes combined. Something the boy took shamelessly advantage of with both hands.

"That's him there." Samantha said stepping next to Chloe so her voice would not carry. Chloe nodded, her suspicions confirmed. "This isn't good, Leiko's group has their mitts on him." Samantha's voice lowered, touched with a hint of worry. "Getting his attention will be a lot harder than I thought." Samantha commented as she watched a particularly well endowed green haired girl smirk around the room as she leaned against the boy's right hand, cooing as she brought it to her chest.

"No, I don't think that's gonna be a problem," Ranma mumbled to herself in resignation.

"Don't get me wrong, you're very good looking, but you don't have the experience to compete with that one." Samantha said with a small frown, confused about the red-head's reluctant confidence. "She's just as experienced as I am and plays twice as dirty."

Ranma's expression turned dark as she faced Chloe. Chloe nearly took a step back despite herself. Those piercing blue eyes were disconcerting.

"What?"

"If you ever break your promise about what happens tonight, I swear I'll make you suffer." She declared with an ominous undertone.

Chloe blinked. That was the first time Ranma had ever threatened her. What could Ranma possible do to warrant such a dire threat?

Ranma turned around, slapping her face, knowing what she would have to do and desperately not wanting to. This had the benefit of adding a tinge of pink to her cheeks. Standing up she slowly opened her eyes wide while her face morphed into a caricature of pure innocent sweetness.

"Kuno darling!" Chloe almost fell off her high heels as Ranma, man amongst men, pranced towards the kendoist. She could almost feel the average heart rate of the men watching rise as they followed her progress across the floor.

"Pray tell, could fortunes grace be greater? My bunny-eared pigtail goddess has come to my waiting arms." Kuno exclaimed as he watched the redhead dance towards him. Well, she really wasn't dancing, but then again the glorious array of cherry blossoms floating through the air didn't exist either.

Ranma gritted her teeth as she approached. 'Must not sock Kuno, would be very bad. Must restrain desire to… '

Glomp

'Must not kill, must not kill, must not kill!' Ranma repeated over and over in her mind as Kuno hugged her _very_ affectionately, taking the time to run his hands down her spine to cup her butt and lift her into his embrace.

When he pulled back, Ranma forced a smile back onto her lips. "Kuno, I've longed to see you again. My heart has ached since I was last with you." Ranma said, forcing her eyelids to flutter. "I'm so happy. That horrible evil sorcerer has finally been defeated and I am free of his evil power," Ranma said, biting off each word while trying to hide her disgust as they left her lips.

The other girls in the room stopped what they were doing to stare incredulously at the scene of cuteness. Even the guards were starting to pay more attention to the odd show than the rest of the bunnies.

With everyone's attention diverted, Chloe discreetly faded into the background.

"Yes! I knew the fateful day would arrive when that foul creature would be vanquished to the abyss from whence he came. My only wish, were that I had unleashed the final blow. But my brave designs are secondary. Now that the cur has been defeated, we may at last be together forever." Kuno said happily, eyes shining with desire as his hands twitched suggestively. Ranma felt like throwing-up or slitting her wrists, anything to be put out of her misery.

Sniffing in disdain, Leiko came around to face Kuno with a sultry smile.

"Oh Kuno, how could you leave me alone like that? I thought you wanted to play with a real woman, not this immature little girl." Leiko said, giving Ranma a scornful glance.

Kuno turned wide eyes to Leiko. "I have not forgotten you. My love is large and may encompass more than one. You must understand, this is the energetic pigtailed girl, my love of old. I could not keep myself from her loving embrace."

Leiko's eyebrow started twitching. 'An interloper,' Leiko thought derisively. 'I will not be disgraced before my clique.' She thought, glancing at the pink and blond haired girls who were smirking at her, watching the fun as the two vied for the samurai wannabe's attention. She quickly dismissed them, pulling her attention back to the task at hand.

"But there are so many games I wanted to show you." Leiko purred running a hand along Kuno's chest. She brought her mouth to his ear, whispering huskily. "Perhaps I'll make you a real man tonight." Kuno's lips were suddenly glued to Leiko's, her hands having pulled his head to her.

'Damn, the one time I need to keep Kuno's attention, some experienced slut shows up.' Ranma thought despairingly. Taking a covert scan of the room Ranma realized that even the bosses were engrossed in the melodrama. No one noticed Chloe had already melted into the background, expertly carrying out her chosen 'profession'.

Sighing internally, Ranma steeled herself. Taking a deep breath, she moved forward, artfully bumping Leiko, she sent her opponent sprawling to the ground. The broken lip-lock made Kuno appear like a large eyed gaping fish. He fell straight into and for the waiting puppy-dog combined with a trembling lip attack.

"But…but Kuno, I've wanted you all to myself for so long. How could you? How could you betray my feelings when I've just been set free? Don….don't you like me anymore?" Ranma asked, adding a forced tear. Individually, these attacks were lethal against most men. In combination, the hardest criminal in existence would be putty in Ranma's hands. Leiko glared at her from her position flat on the floor, rubbing her sore rear. It didn't take long for her greater experience to tell her she didn't stand a chance against this ingénue, not with her past history with the boy.

"My darling pigtailed girl, mere words can not express the love I hold for you. Yet I have love enough to share," Kuno said, gleefully oblivious of the small twitch developing on Death's brow.

Ranma bit back a scathing response. Every fiber of her being wanted to nail the buffoon to the wall preferably with his sword. Ranma quickly restrained the desire. As satisfying as knocking this idiot around the room would be, it would draw just the kind of attention they wanted to avoid. Ranma sensed that Chloe had taken a quarter of the guards out discreetly. She just had to restrain herself for a couple more minutes.

"I'm sorry, my darling Kuno. I'm so selfish," Ranma said, tracing little circles on his chest with her index finger. "I want you all to myself. I know it's wrong of me, but… I can't help the desire that burns in my heart whenever I see you. Just for tonight, could I have you all to myself?" Ranma pleaded with another puppy-dog eye attack joined by a hesitant lick across her quivering full lips.

In actuality, Ranma was trying not to barf. Kuno lapped up ever word, his chest puffing out and his head so held high he started to resemble one of those fat chested pigeons. If she had to say something that gross ever again she swore she would kill Kuno in the slowest and most painful way she could find then wash her mouth out with caustic soda.

Leiko was looking slightly sickened as she stood back up, her eyes shooting icy daggers straight at Ranma. Ranma recognized that look; the vixen would take her revenge any way she could. Ranma had hurt her pride and she would never forget it.

"Very well my beloved, I will bow before your overwhelming desire this night. Consider this but a small token of my undying praise to your fiery beauty."

'Must not kill, must not kill, must not kill.' Ranma thought, forcing her hand away from the knife mere moments away from use.

"Oh thank you, 'My' brave sir Kuno." Ranma answered taking Kuno's arm, claiming victory and possession all in one move. "Would you introduce me to everyone? I'm sure they must be important people to know someone as wonderful as you," Ranma gushed trying to keep everyone's attention just a little longer and also hoping to forestall any of Kuno's baser ideas. 'Let's see, Chloe has killed… ten. That leaves ten left. Just four more and I can take the rest in one shot without endangering anyone.'

Ranma thought as she was led to the pile of bunny girls surrounding the three people she had come to… handle…in the first place. They were all lowlifes, scars criss-crossed their face hiding hard eyes only lax enough to enjoy the entertainment of the night.

"This is my grandfather and his associates. They are in the _business_." Kuno winked twice. Ranma, managed to keep her face composed as she doubted that Kuno had any inkling of what 'the business' actually meant. Probably never even stopped to wonder where all the money his family made came from either.

Keeping an oblivious expression, she hid her real thoughts as she spoke in her cutest voice, "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"It appears that my grandson has finally found someone to take care of him. I was beginning to worry he would not find that special someone that could truly appreciate his better qualities." Ranma's smile became strained as she watched the man's hands as he boldly groped the moaning blue haired girl sitting in his lap. This more than anything made his connection to the Kuno family apparent, Ranma would recognize that lechery anywhere.

"Yes, people just don't see Kuno's real self the way I do." Ranma said, her eye twitching as she envisioned the way she'd like to see him. 'His head smashed into a brick wall preferably,' she thought to herself. Fortunately, the elder was just as oblivious as his grandson to her true feelings.

"I've heard many tales of my grandson's red haired goddess. I thought they were mere embellishment, but here I find that his words simply do not do you justice."

"Why thank you." Ranma said, bowing low to the criminal boss. As she rose, her eyes snapped wide as Chloe gave the signal, it wasn't elegant but it did the trick.

'NOW!'

Ranma dropped the false smile. Leaping into the air, she threw three knives from each hand. Several came inches from a few of the girls around the room. Unerringly, six men slumped lifelessly on their tables, scaring the girls attending to them.

Ranma slowly turned back to her primary objective. Each was frantically attempting to free their arms of two or three hysterical girls so they could reach their guns.

"What are you doing, my pigtailed goddess? Why would you attack my grandfather's men?" Kuno asked dumbly, taking a step away from Ranma.

Ranma didn't take her eyes away from the lowlifes. "If you don't already know, your Grandfather is a crime lord, he's responsible for two thirds of the illegal narcotics imported into Tokyo. He has ruined the lives of hundreds of thousands to make the money that you pompously throw around. His two associates are no better." Ranma said, her vicious eyes coldly spearing the already frightened bosses. "They deal primarily in the slave market. They're responsible for forcing three-fourths of these girls into prostitution." Those girls not frightened out of their mind in fear gasped, seeing the scarred men as something far more insidious than an easy tip. "The promising lives ruined by the drug traders are generously 'saved' by them," her voice dripped with sarcasm, "They _mercifully_ take in the female children of addicts as payment. They're then given to pimps to raise into the lifestyle of selling their bodies. Of course, most of the money they're paid goes straight to the pimp. It keeps them penniless so they can't possibly leave. And these are the people that you call friends and relatives Kuno? Tell me, why would I let such continue when I have the power to stop it?"

Kuno's head slowly turned to stare at his Grandfather in horror. 'We are noble. This money is our birthright… Isn't it? There can be no way it comes from such lowly designs...' He had to know the truth.

"Is this true, Grandfather?" Kuno asked, stepping away slowly, the shock evident on his face.

The older man frowned, but made no move to deny the accusations.

His associates stared at Ranma, unnerved by the knives she twirled in her hand. On closer inspection, one would see a deep gash on each of their hands, their guns gently rocking back and forth on the far wall.

"It's time to pay the piper." Ranma said, menacingly, blades becoming a blur between the petite redhead's dexterous fingers.

"Please don't kill me! I can make you wealthier than you could possibly imagine. Take anything you want, just don't kill me," one pleaded as he sobbed on his knees. Ranma simply watched his groveling neutrally, not a shred of pity crossing her face, waiting. In the blink of an eye, the man whipped out a small pistol. The knife in Ranma's hand appeared to vanish, appearing in the center of the lowlifes head. The look of surprise etched on his face was frozen as he slumped against his frightened neighbor. Through it all, her eyes never left the others on the couch, letting them know she was prepared for anything.

"I've already seen that trick," Ranma said with a derisive sniff. "Do either of you wish to show me any others?" Ranma asked the remaining vermin. The man on the right shifted nervously away as the new weight finally fell off, leaning against his leg, he gradually removed his hand from his concealed weapon and back into plain sight. Kuno's grandfather remained stoic, meeting her eyes steadily.

"I have been defeated. I accept my fate as our ancient samurai blood demands." He said bowing his head.

'Finally, some true honor mixed with the Kuno's insanity. Not much given his occupation, but at least he accepts his fate.' Ranma thought with an approving nod.

"No, I won't die." Kuno's subordinate grabbed one of the girls either too foolish or paralyzed with fear to get clear of the action. He brought his gun to her head. "Don't come any closer! I'll kill her if you do!" Ranma watched him drolly as his hand quivered around the gun. The captured bunny girl descended further into hysterics. Ranma simply shook her head.

"Now you've taken it out of my hands. My compatriot is much less forgiving than I am and I believe she has been offended."

"Compatriot?" The man asked dumbly. He never had time to react to the blur that picked him up and launched him at the far wall.

"If you prefer, you can say partner." Chloe mentioned in a low voice as she caught the feinted bunny-girl in her arms, she lay the girl down and advanced on the man. Cracking her knuckles, he feebly attempted to kick her away but found he'd only given her a convenient means of dragging him through the only door leading out of the grand hall. The door snapped shut with a decisive click.

The screams that echoed from the room made more than one girl jump. Slow minutes passed before the screams abruptly cut off in a gurgle of wet sound.

"Now, as for you, Kuno senior…" Ranma said, turning her attention to the last piece of trash.

"I will be his second." Kuno declared stoically, slowly drawing his katana.

Ranma sweat-dropped at Kuno's determined countenance.

"I would be honored to have my Grandson be my second as I commit seppuku." The elder man said, bowing low.

'Loonies, I swear. Maybe there's honor there, but they're still insane.' Ranma thought to herself as she watched the two samurai wannabes.

"Fine, but take it somewhere else. Chloe could you watch them for me?" Ranma asked the girl as she re-entered the room after her grisly task.

She nodded, opening the door wide, pinning the two with an impenetrable stare.

They both formally bowed before the girl, entering into the room. The door closed with a snap, leaving Ranma alone in the grand hall with nearly seventy bunny-ear clad girls.

Ranma took a deep breath. The night had been embarrassing and more than a little annoying, but they'd completed their task. She stared down at the man she had killed. Yes, her hands had taken life again. They were bad men, but no matter how horrible their sins, their blood still coated Ranma's hands.

She shivered as she felt eyes, thousands of eyes staring at her, watching her, judging her. No, she'd been right, she'd done this to protect countless people. The relentless eyes didn't care, their accusing gaze seemed to scream; she had killed, guilty of the one sin she had once sworn to prevent.

'GO AWAY!'

Ranma spun around gun pointed at those eyes.

"AAAAH"

Ranma blinked, faced by a room full of fearful girls, watching her, several trembling, awaiting their judgment, knowing full well that if this petite little girl found them lacking, no amount of running would save them.

'I almost… no, I would never.' Ranma shut the idea out of her mind, sheathing her gun so fast that a few of the girls wondered if it had ever existed.

"Uhhh, you girls had better go home now." Ranma said, raising her voice. The sigh that spread across the room was audible, expanding Ranma's guilt a thousand fold. What was unexpected was that not even the most frightened bunny moved an inch.

"But what happens now?" A tentative question came from the crowd.

Ranma stared blankly back at the expectant crowd.

A long uncomfortable silence descended, ending as Samantha stepped forward. "I think what she means is what will happen to us now that the people responsible for destroying our lives are dead. The pimps that held our leash will likely go into hiding leaving most of these girls high and dry." Ranma's stare remained blank.

Samantha shook her head, realizing that their unexpected heroine remained clueless to the problem.

"Some of them don't know anything except how to please a man. Either everything else was beaten out of them or they were brought in so young they never knew there was anything else. Without their pimp, they'll likely die."

Ranma's eyes widened as she saw hesitant nods throughout the crowd. She had never known it was going to be this bad.

"You could lead us, you could protect us." A hesitant voice squeaked in the background. Ranma's brow started to twitch as nearly every girl in the room started to proclaim that she was one of them, knew what they had gone through, that she could protect them from ever having to do it again.

"STOP!" Ranma yelled, silence washed across the crowed, everyone eyed her fearfully, concerned that they may not live out the night after all. Sighing Ranma tried to think clearly. Apparently, she had just stepped into something very large, smelly and usually disposed of by toilet.

Opening her eyes, she spoke in a firm voice.

"Ok, first off I **ain't **a hooker. This is only a disguise I used to get in here." Ranma was a little disquieted by the number of girls who were shocked by this revelation.

"Second, I will take out any boss that tries to move in and do the same thing these guys did."

"Yahoooooo!"

Ranma sweat dropped as the girls started to cheer.

"I'M NOT DONE!" Ranma shouted, the room went completely silent, faces eagerly awaiting her next words.

"I will not be able to take care of you all." The cheer fell away from the crowd as it began to restlessly shift about, the girls murmuring in low frightened voices.

"There are far too many things that I have to do right now." The worried murmurs grew in frequency, "However, you have natural leaders that can organize everything for you." Stepping forward, Ranma approached Samantha, her eyes growing wide.

"Samantha has excellent leadership capability. Most of you already know this. She could organize you, perhaps start putting away funds for each of you to get an education to get out of this life before something goes wrong." All the girls were now staring at a very embarrassed Samantha, some with nods, others with grudging respect. Ranma nudged the reluctant woman forward as everyone stared at her expectantly.

Samantha shook herself before sighing. "Ok, I have a couple of ideas that could get us going. But how will we contact you? I can guarantee that someone will try and stranglehold us once word of this circulates." She said gesturing to the downed bosses.

Ranma eyed the mess she had made before nodding. Discreetly, she slipped closer to Samantha and whispered. "The person at this number will be able to contact me. Don't use it unless there is an absolute emergency," Ranma repeated the digits until Samantha nodded that she had them then glanced around at the girls who'd leaned closer to try and listen.

Samantha smiled, taking the paper she had written the number on, and stowing it back… wherever it had come from, before starting to organize the bunnies.

Ranma took several steps back, watching the crowd converge. Her eyes took in the new hope she had fostered. At least a few lives would be brought back from the devastation caused by the Yakuza. Now they would just have to deal with the elevator guy and give the pervert upstairs a good beating. Ranma thought as she cracked her knuckles ominously.

"You did well."

Ranma jumped as she spun around to find Chloe standing behind her.

"Don't do that!"

Chloe replied with a small triumphant smirk. She had finally managed to sneak up on Ranma.

* * *

Author's end notes: Not much to say really. I'm puzzled by everyone's expectation that Kuno would die. I'll admit that characters do die in my stories occasionally, but I typically only do so if it would be surprising or draw emotion naturally. If it doesn't do that, I see very little reason to pointlessly go around killing characters off.

See you next time,

brindani


	18. The Weight of the World

Author's notes: I apologize for how late this chapter is. I'll admit that a lot has been happening, though mostly a lack of motivation is the greatest culprit. The main reason I've started going over the chapters now is due to the subtle encouragement of Porthos112 who then had to deal with a completely overhauled chapter with minimal correction. My deepest appreciation goes out to Porthos112, Weebee, and James Axelrad for their help in making this a far better story than I could do by myself.

Disclaimer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 18: The Weight of the World

Ranma slumped down into his chair, realizing one serious drawback to his nighttime activities; mornings were now the bane of his existence. Coming home well after three in the morning only to be roused by his Mother's far too cheerful voice at six would leave anyone dragging. His uncoordinated floundering deep within soft silken sheets as he struggled out of sleep at least brought a small smile over her worn features.

He didn't like his Mother's insistence on getting up so early. After all, she knew full well what time he came back in the morning. The last time he had asked her why, she had only replied that it helped to build character.

While it was rather annoying, Ranma didn't really mind it that much. He'd noticed the hidden edginess behind her increasingly weary eyes. He knew she stayed up well into the early hours of the night waiting for his return, her reading lamp casting shadows over her features as she slept in one of the overstuffed chairs near the door. More than once, he had lightly placed a blanket over her only to hear her mumble, "Ranma, please be ok." as she hugged the blanket tightly to herself.

His concern only grew when, on those few occasions he stayed home at night, he heard her shouting Genma's name frantically. He had held his Mother during those times, uncertain who was offer whom comfort.

Neither of them mentioned those late nights.

Besides, waking up early wasn't too much of a problem. After fussing over him for a couple of hours, his Mother always let him get back to sleep for an extended nap, say till two in the afternoon.

"You need to eat more to keep up your health." Ranma blinked as he watched Nodoka wearing a pale cherry blossom kimono sit across from him. His sleep deprived mind able to do little more than stare. She allowed a strained smile as she gently gestured to the piece of pancake held midway between his plate and his mouth.

Nodoka nodded as she watched Ranma continue to eat.

"So how did last night go?" Nodoka asked as she always did when he spent his nights out, the casual way she rested her chin on her left arm belied the importance of the question to her.

The steady flow of food paused, Ranma's eyes widening a fraction before eating at a much faster pace. Nodoka raised one brow as their early morning routine suddenly took on an interesting twist.

Ranma continued to eat, hoping his Mother would think he hadn't heard the question, or continue with another. Several long minutes banished such hopes as a stolen glance revealed her sole attention remained focused on him. Setting his chopsticks down carefully, Ranma took a long gulp of milk, trying to postpone the inevitable. Setting the glass down, Ranma hesitantly met his Mother's intense gaze.

"It… went alright," Ranma answered, picking up his chopsticks to start eating again.

The spark of interest grew in Nodoka's eyes. Ranma was always full of details the day after one of his missions. How he and Chloe found the scum of the gutter and…took care of them. He tended to gloss over the details of the deed, but that was about it. 'What could possibly have happened last night that he wouldn't want to tell me? He and Chloe…' The tired smile took on a life of its own, creeping ever larger.

"I… see. Did something… interesting happen that you don't want to tell your Mother?" Nodoka asked, leaning forward, giving Ranma the _look_. The same expression that parents across the world seemed to inherit when they have children. The one that let their offspring know that every single trace of a secret they held dear was shortly to be ripped away, one piece at a time.

Ranma was caught completely off guard.

"Um…no, nothing… interesting happened at all," Ranma hedged, attempting to laugh it off only to find his Mother now sat next to him, leaning over, her eyes focused intently on his own.

The laugh cut off abruptly.

"Really?" her large luminous eyes eclipsing his vision, the big predatory like smile eliciting a frantic desire to flee. He had faced hundreds of the Soldat's gunmen, armed with the most advanced weaponry in the industry without breaking a sweat and he suddenly had the deep seated urge to relieve himself under the gaze he now found himself.

Knock, knock

"Gaau! I'd better get that," Ranma exclaimed, appearing to teleport in his bid to flee the table. It wouldn't be polite to leave someone waiting now would it?

"Hmmm… the chase begins," Nodoka whispered as she stood, lightly smoothing out her kimono before walking without rush to greet Chloe. After all, she was the only one to visit and if Ranma was hesitant to reveal details of the previous night, his partner would be the next best source of information.

Nodoka's guess was confirmed as Chloe calmly rounded the corner, wearing jeans and a pale blue sweater against the frigid morning.

"Chloe, what great timing. Ranma and I were just discussing the details of last night." Nodoka exclaimed, her smile serene as she was suddenly stood directly in front of the girl.

Chloe nearly drew back, still unaccustomed to anyone able to enter her personal space without her being aware of it. To her credit, Chloe did resist the urge to flail back at the unexpected presence. She managed to confine her reaction to a simple eye blink. It took a moment under that intense smile to realize just what Nodoka had said. Chloe's brow twitched as she slowly turned to Ranma with an unreadable expression. Ranma franticly shook his head behind his Mother's shoulder.

"I see. Not very much happened last night." She responded quietly, walking past the two.

All traces of weariness from the past weeks evaporated as Nodoka's eyes fully lit up.

"Oh, my. You two really were up to something! When can I expect the grandchildren?" Nodoka asked eagerly, her face beaming as she nearly hopped from one foot to the other in anticipation.

Ranma spluttered incoherently while Chloe almost tripped on her own feet while whirling around to face the older woman, her expression unreadable. At least Chloe hoped it was unreadable. That last jump in motherly intuition, especially its direction, had pushed Chloe well beyond anything she had once considered her comfort zone.

Regaining his senses a little bit faster, Ranma ran in front of his Mother, staring at her with as much incredulity as he could muster.

"What are you talking about!? Nothing like that happened!" Ranma proclaimed, breathing heavily at the mere mention of such a thought.

Nodoka pouted. "What a shame, I was really hoping for grandchildren soon. I suppose I can wait a little longer for the two of you. However, if that was not the case, what were you up to?"

"Uhhhh, we just took out a couple of Yakuza bosses, that's all," Ranma explained waving his arms back and forth frantically.

Nodoka critically examined both of the youths. Ranma was sweating heavily with a large false reassuring smile plastered on his face while Chloe hid a slight blush from the older woman's searching gaze by facing away from them both. "Are you _sure_ that is all that happened?" Nodoka asked skeptically

Ranma nodded quickly, gulping when Nodoka's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

Ring

'Thank god, saved again,' Ranma thought as he turning away from his Mother, pulling out his vibrating cell phone

"This is an important call. I've got to take it, Mom." Quickly grabbing Chloe's arm, Ranma hastily retreated out the back door. The spacious backyard was surrounded by a high glistening oak fence with a small walkway leading to a pond bordered by brightly polished granite. From within the deep clear pool, an occasional koi would jump up to claim a tasty morsel.

It was next to this pond that Ranma let go of Chloe's arm and used his sleeve to wipe a thick layer of sweat from his brow.

"Shoot, that was close." Ranma mumbled, flipping the phone open.

"Hello? Yes?" Ranma answered, absently walked around the pond, his concentration fully on the conversation. Chloe stood back, watching his pacing figure make its first circuit of the watery sanctuary. She was well aware from their time at the Manor that if he couldn't be on the roof to think, by mandate of Nodoka in this case, he tended to absently walk around the pond. "You want to discuss that more in person? Do you think they figured out how to listen in? I thought you said this phone was scrambled or something." Chloe watched Ranma's concerned expression ease. "I see, and you don't mind… Up to me?" Ranma's eyes widened in surprise. "Yes, ok I'll be there tonight." Ranma finished, shutting the phone.

"Something has happened with your contact?" Chloe asked, leaning against the pole that hung over the pond, its antique lantern swinging from the slight disturbance.

"Hmmmm," Ranma pondered, his attention drawn by Chloe's question. His eyes slowly shifted up and down her body, taking in the relaxed posture, well aware she could lash out with lethal intent in an instant.

"What?" She asked, the faintest of blushes crossing her cheeks, Nodoka's insinuations fresh in her mind.

Ranma ignored her question, continuing to study her intently, his eyes finally locking on her own. Chloe would have asked again, but found herself mysteriously unable to. His gaze felt like it was constricting her throat uncomfortably. She was saved from her discomfort as Ranma finally nodded his head coming to some final decision.

"Do you still want to meet my contact?" Ranma asked, his roguish smile returning in full now that his decision was made.

Chloe forcefully cleared her mind of the powerful sensations that had run up and down her spine under his scrutiny, deliberately focusing on his words.

Chloe eventually nodded.

"Good, do you have a ballroom gown?" Chloe blinked and then blinked again.

"Yes," She said slowly, uncertain what Ranma had in mind.

Ranma nodded before pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket, quickly scribbling an address. Putting the pen away, he offered the paper to the short haired girl.

Taking it, Chloe examined the messy scrawls, her attention drawn away as Ranma spoke again. "There is going to be a ballroom dance tonight. Meet me at that address dressed for the occasion. I don't expect any trouble, but just in case, carry a few extra knives, okay?"

Chloe returned her attention to his note, squinting to make out each character before nodded, slipping the address away into a pocket. "I recognize the name. It is that high end ballroom they finished last year. It was supposed to have had substantial funding from the Yakuza. Interesting..."

"So I will see you there?" Ranma answered, watching Chloe think about the possible repercussions of this newest information.

"Yes, I'll come," Chloe answered, coming out of her reverie before turning to walk away from Ranma.

"What's your rush? We have breakfast ready and there is plenty for one more." Ranma offered, smiling lazily, he gestured a hand towards the house.

Chloe shook her head, nodding behind him.

Confusion written across the pigtailed boy's face, he turned around. Ranma's eyes widened as he found his Mother waving serenely from behind the screen door.

"Oh… I see your point. Ummmm… in that case… could I come with you?" Ranma pleaded, forming his male version of the puppy dog eye attack.

Chloe, unimpressed, shook her head, a small smile blooming once her back was to the frantic boy.

"Well, I'll see you later tonight."

"Ranma dear, time to come in and finish your breakfast."

Said boy cringed as he slowly turned back to his Mother's beckoning call.

"At least I hope I'll see you later tonight," Ranma whispered under his breath as he forced his legs to move towards his impending doom.

* * *

The blazing sun taunted any who believed the cool morning would be an indication for the rest of the day. Waves of distorted air drifted up from the searing hot sidewalk, making the single occupant of the desolate streets feel as if he existed within an oven. The impeccably dressed man with the pressed grey suit and matching bowler hat chuckled at the thought. The chuckle changed to a gasp as he clutched his chest, wheezing as pain lanced through his body.

"I knew I shouldn't have come, even the weather sides with the house against my honor bound duty, trying to kill me before I can meet him." He mumbled, leaning heavily against a large oak fence similar in nature to many of the yards surrounding him. Even as the pain receded, slower than ever before, he knew that the oak he currently leaned against was special. It held something precious, something he had not seen in nearly seventeen long years.

It brought a tear to his aged brown eyes to finally have a chance to see it once more, to have the privilege of placing it on the pedestal it was denied for these long years. Shaking away such lofty thoughts, he leaned away from his impromptu support, feeling dizzy even as he steadied himself. Turning around, he gazed up at the tilted roof that barely peaked over the fence.

With a sigh, he tore his eyes away from the roof, focusing on the finely crafted door that seamlessly matched with the fence. "My, it appears that the Mistress has not changed the lock of the door in all these years. Perhaps…"

Squinting, the man deliberately counted each post, stopping on the twenty third. He lightly placed his soft plump hand against the wood, feeling the smooth texture of the finely crafted wood as he trailed his fingertips against it. "Ah, the Mistress did not find it I see." He mumbled, stopping at the base of the board, using a nimbleness that defied the pudgy digits used, coerced a seamless section of wood away to reveal a secret panel, a small ornate key laying on the bottom.

A small smile formed as he emptied the box, lightly pushing the container back into position where, once again, it became indistinguishable from the fence that held it. The key fit perfectly, a soft click issued as it turned. Without the slightest noise, the well oiled gate opened, revealing the house in all its glory. A wave of nostalgia swept over him as his eyes traced the beige flagstone path that led up to the steps made of a similar material. Well trimmed grass on either side of the path. To the left, an immaculate bird-bath, small African animals boldly chiseled on its side, each frozen in immortality.

"Nothing has changed. I can still see the young Mistress cradling that wonderful bundle of joy, laughing so freely as she turned to me with that beautiful smile." The man shook himself. "I can not allow myself to fall into the memories of those good times. Time is paramount." So saying, the man allowed the entrance to close, hearing the click as it locked again before moving slowly up the flag stone path.

"Awww!" the man screamed, finding his face abruptly pressed against the grass, separated only by the thin spectacles hanging on his nose. The view of the grass was as nothing compared to the sudden presence he felt behind him, holding his arms at an uncomfortable angle behind his back and a very sharp object now hovering next to his throat, the last weighing very heavily on his mind.

"You are alive for only two reasons." He heard the menacing whisper next to his ear, sending a shiver of fear shooting throughout his body. "One, you are so out of shape that you pose no threat and…" The voice drifted off a moment, the sweat running off his brow moments ago was nothing compared to the torrent that featured now. "…you are wearing a grey suit." The man nearly collapsed, saved from such folly by the pointed reminder that remained firmly to his neck. 'I…I am so glad I didn't follow Yoko's advice for this meeting!'

"Now, your life depends on how you answer these next questions. Who are you?" The threatening whisper came again, promising to act at the first sign of hesitance.

"M…my name is Yoshi," the words sounded strangled even to his pounding ears.

"Who sent you?"

"My h…h…house."

"Now, what are you doing here?"

"I…I'm to return with the Master of this household." The man gasped as the edge cut into his throat, drawing a thin trail of blood.

"So you're here to capture me?" the words were harsh steel, ready to remove his life from this existence.

"Is that you, Ranma?" Yoshi asked, startled by the small revelation.

"Answer the question!" The man cringed as the knife bit into his throat another millimeter.

"I would never do such a thing to you, young Master. I have come because the Saotome clan desperately needs your guidance!" The words tumbled out, as a level of fear Yoshi never imagined possible gripped his heart.

The moment stretched, Yoshi heard the thunder of his heart beat against his chest, each strained breath the roar of a hurricane as his fate hung at the nape of his neck, its cold metallic bite eager to end his life.

As fast as it had arrived, the knife vanished, the only evidence of its existence the small seep of blood that continued to come from the wound. Still very much afraid, Yoshi felt the weight from his back lift, allowing him free movement once more. He turned slowly, nearly blinded by the light after his close encounter with the local flora. Outlined from his low crouch he gasped as for one moment he was certain he once again knelt before his true and only Master in his glorious youth.

His eyes adjust quickly, spotting differences between the boy before him and the one he had taken care of all those years ago. His brown eyes were nothing like the intense steely blue that gazed down on him now. He felt as if he was in the presence of the grim reaper himself, a specter he had taken no stock in until he trembled before this boy.

"What business does clan Saotome have with me?" The tight emotionless words broke the image as Yoshi realized his life was by no means spared.

"Your Grandfather recently passed away. You are the heir to the Saotome line as was decreed by your Grandfather's last will and testament. I have come to guide you to your birthright." Yoshi finished, bowing low.

Ranma stared at the man intently, his eyes ripping Yoshi apart, carefully examining each piece before moving onto the next. It was a very… disconcerting feeling.

"No."

If he had not already been bowing on his knees, Yoshi felt certain he would have crashed to the ground as Ranma walked away.

"Wait!" He cried franticly, reaching a hand from his crouched position.

Ranma stopped halfway back up the sidewalk, not turning to face the man.

"I don't have time to play at being the head of the Saotome clan, there are far too many things on my plate as it is."

"Please, young Master, without your guidance the Saotome clan will surely fall." Yoshi shifted his crouch, fully prostrating himself before Ranma. "I beg of you to reconsider."

"I thought I…" Ranma's response was lost, interrupted by an almost musical voice from behind.

"Yoshi? What a pleasant surprise. What brings you all the way out here?" Ranma turned, finding Nodoka standing at the front door, tranquil smile shining as if seeing her son and an old acquaintances prostrate himself on her front lawn was a daily occurrence.

"Lady Nodoka, you honor me with your presence," Yoshi said, shifting his bow to Ranma's Mother.

"Oh, please. You needn't stand on formality here. Why don't you come in? You can tell us what has brought you over a refreshing cup of tea." Nodoka requested, returning to the house.

Of the two, Ranma was the first to recover from the unexpected offer.

"If Mom wants to invite you in, that's fine, but as far as I'm concerned my decision is final." He whispered, just loud enough for Yoshi to hear.

Yoshi heaved a large sigh, wheezing as he pulled himself back up to his feet, brushing what dirt and grass he could from the rumbled suit.

"Sometimes it does not pay to get out of bed." He mumbled, ambling after the young Master.

He followed Ranma into the house, respectfully taking his bowler off as he entered, lightly placing it on the rack next to the door. Yoshi brushed a hand through his thinning dark brown hair, taking the moment to bask in the wondrous invention known as air-conditioning. His brief reverence was interrupted by a small cough. Looking back, Yoshi found Ranma gesture with his head, a touch of impatience very clear in his features. His previous encounter very fresh in his memories, Yoshi gulped, quickly moving into the living room. Nodoka sat serenely behind the table, three cups of steaming tea waiting.

Ranma joined his Mother while Yoshi sat across from both. Glancing wearily at the young man, he calmed down before reverently taking a deep breath of the fragrant tea.

"Awww, no one I have ever met has been able to make tea as well as you, Mistress Nodoka." Yoshi complemented as he wrapped his hands around the cup, sipping from the refreshing beverage with his eyes closed to capture each moment of the rare mixture of herbs and spices tantalizing his taste buds.

"I had a wonderful teacher all those long years ago," Nodoka nodded in turn.

Yoshi's cheeks grew dark red as he hid himself behind his cup.

"Perhaps, but the student quickly outstripped the teacher," Yoshi offered back.

Ranma's eyes flicked between the two adults, his confusion growing by the second.

"You know this guy, Mom?" Ranma asked, his tea untouched.

"Certainly, Dear. Yoshi was the personal attendant to Genma and his most faithful servant when he was heir to the Saotome clan. It was he who took care of me those few times Genma had to leave while I was injured. He spent many long hours teaching me the fine art of cooking. To this day I am in awe of his extraordinary patience with my negligible cooking skill." Nodoka finished, offering a small smile to the older man.

"Please, you give me too much credit. It was simply a pleasure to witness your determination. Besides…" Yoshi grinned as an image formed in his mind. "…the look on Master's face when he returned to find the microwave destroyed the day you attempted to boil water has kept a chuckle close to my heart all these years."

Nodoka quietly laughed behind her hand, smiling pleasantly as she reflected on memories from long ago.

Ranma looked dumbstruck. There was a time his Mother didn't know how to cook? A time when she made even Akane look competent? He simply couldn't bend his mind around such a concept.

"Tell me, Yoshi, you appear much changed from those days. How has life since Genma's removal treated you?" Nodoka asked, her expression changing as she critically examined her friend from so long ago.

A wane smile spread across Yoshi's features. "When Genma left and did not allow me to accompany him, the clan placed me into an endless stream of meaningless paperwork. I'm afraid that over the years I have allowed myself to grow lax under the constant strain."

"I see, the clan could not remove you due to the repercussions if Ranma were to become clan head, yet they did not want you to affect clan affairs."

"Yes, I'm afraid that is likely the case."

"I apologize for the suffering you must have endured simply because you were faithful to us." Nodoka moved back from the table, bowing low to the older man.

"Please, you honor this unworthy soul too much. The best moments of my life were spent in the service to both yourself and Master Genma. My only regret is that I could not join you in your forced exile." The moment stretched out, Yoshi and Nodoka staring at each other, one with contentment, the other with regret.

"I do apologize, but the situation, unfortunately, does not allow us to reminisce about the old times." Yoshi said, lowering his head.

"Yes, you are correct, Yoshi. What has brought you here? I can only imagine that even with your personal knowledge of our planning, it took some effort to find our location."

"Indeed, please forgive me, Mistress. I would never have used that knowledge unless the situation were not grave."

"I assumed as much. What has happened?" Nodoka asked taking a sip from her tea.

"The clan head died last night. The Saotome clan is in upheaval. Its attendants fight each other over control of its assets. I'm certain that if they are allowed to continue that they will rend the clan apart in short order. Despite what they believe, the clan needs its new Master."

Nodoka frowned. "I feared this day would come. How did he die?"

"I was told it was a peaceful death in his sleep due to old age." Yoshi replied.

"I held no love for the man, but I am happy he did not suffer in the end. So you have come to take Ranma and place him as the clan head?" Nodoka asked, sighing deeply.

"I apologize, but the clan needs a head or the work of generations will dissolve in a matter of months." Yoshi said, again bowing his head.

"I see, this does pose a problem. My Son is currently taking care of some private business dealing with the Soldats. Leading the Saotome clan would not only be impractical, it would prove fatal."

"The Soldats? You mean that they are after you again? I thought that they had dismissed their claim on Master Ranma for the title of Noir."

"So had I until recently. They have come to claim him both figuratively and literally. Altena has cemented Ranma 's position as the fourth sapling and other sections of the Soldats have become disquieted by the fact."

"But I thought he was disqualified due to his gender?" Yoshi asked, confused by the ordeal he had stumbled into.

"Ranma, would you be a dear and show him?" Nodoka asked, taking another sip of her tea.

"Do I have to?" Ranma groaned, every time someone new came into his life, he always had to go through the same thing. He was getting sick of it.

"Please dear, this is a very old and good friend of the family. He, more than anyone, deserves to know."

Sighing, Ranma stood, ducking into the kitchen. He returned with two cups of water. Yoshi noticed that steam rose from one of them. All in all, he was more confused than when the conversation started.

"See I got cursed when my Pops took me on a training journey to China. When I'm splashed with cold water…" Ranma pored one cup over his now her head. "…I turn into a girl." Yoshi's eyes grew wide as he witnessed the transformation.

"That's…That's…"

Ranma sighed as she closed her eyes. "Impossible? Believe me, I get it all the time."

"But then how do you return to normal?" Yoshi asked, nervously, it wouldn't be good if Ranma permanently became a girl in demonstration for him.

"When I'm splashed with hot water, I turn back." Ranma explained, splashing her now himself with the hot water.

"Here," Nodoka said, offering Ranma a towel.

"Thanks Mom." Ranma said, taking the towel.

Yoshi rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he watched the youth dry himself.

"I see how that could complicate the situation in regards to Noir. Now that the Soldats have taken an interest in you, your life is in grave danger. Still… the clan will die without your aid."

Nodoka nodded, giving Yoshi a considering look. "Would it not be true that as long as Ranma demonstrated his authority that the clan's advisors could do most of the work regarding the day to day operation?" Nodoka asked.

Yoshi hesitantly nodded his head. "It is possible… if Ranma were to demonstrate himself as a powerful leader, the advisors would likely not seek to undermine his control. Still, that would not last long, clan Saotome would stagnate without a constant presence"

"I understand, however, given the situation you realize that such a presence will not be possible until everything has been settled." Nodoka closed her eyes, uncharacteristically rubbing her temples with a pained expression. Ranma watched as his Mother seemed to come to a decision after several long and awkward minutes. "We do not have a choice. Ranma will have to make an appearance to claim the position and then allow the advisors to continue. Random visits should keep them in line."

"Yes, for the continued safety of the young Master and that of the clan, this does appear to be the only viable solution," Yoshi agreed, bowing his head in deference.

"Wait a minute, what about me?" Ranma asked "I've got a lot of things to take care of. I can't just take time out to play at being the head of the clan periodically." Ranma words brought a worried expression to Yoshi's face.

'It appears that the young Master is just as strong willed as Genma in his youth. He will become a very powerful leader one day, but not if the Saotome legacy crumbles beneath his feet first.'

"Please young Master…" Yoshi implored, but was cut off by Nodoka's raised hand.

"Give me a number where I may reach you. Ranma and I shall discuss this," Nodoka requested, her voice grave. Yoshi hastened to remove a pen from his pocket, quickly writing a number on the piece of paper provided.

Yoshi reluctantly bowed one last time before the matriarch. "I regret the circumstances of our reunion and the additional burden I have placed before you. Please forgive me." With that, the man was gone, showing himself out.

The silence that hung in the air felt cold and heavy. Ranma shifted uncomfortable under his Mother's unreadable gaze.

"Ranma," said boy nearly jumped at his Mother's whisper.

"Yes?" He answered quickly.

"I'm afraid to say that this is another weight that was destined to fall to your shoulders. I understand that together, these burdens can appear to be crushing. I have felt their weight myself. I know their constant press on both the mind and body. Everyone expects you to be and do everything. It can be very difficult.

Few are strong enough to reach Noir, much less have the power to defy the puppet master's strings that bind them to the Soldats for revenge. Revenge, however, is not the only thing that you must keep in mind. If you continue along the path of an assassin, there will come a day where you fail. Youth will eventually overtake you." Ranma's protest was forestalled by his Mother's raised hand. "I speak of the far future, even if you find a way to live as long as Happosai, the day will eventually come. You will make many enemies no matter how you tread, when the time comes, you will need a place to settle and live out your days in safety.

The young do not have to consider such things until much later in their life. They are allowed time to be young, live life in any way they see fit with few restrictions. I am afraid that due to circumstances well out of either of our hands, you have been denied this simply right. Decisions that would balk men twice your age are placed at your feet on a daily basis. The clan represents another of these decisions. If you do not at least make a token effort, the clan of your Father will crumble, forever in disgrace.

Please, do this for Genma. Help lead the Saotome clan to the honor only you can bring it."

Nodoka's resolved stare pierced into Ranma's own. When he did not reply, Nodoka looked away, standing to leave him to his think.

Ranma slumped against the table, feeling every ounce of weight his Mother just described. He was tired. Not physically. No, something deep within him felt stretched and worn, each new tragic event straining him in different directions.

Ranma sighed as he collapsed against the table. He would have to do this. He would do it for the honor of his Mother and Father.

* * *

Author's end notes: Not much to say, the chapter is just delving into how the characters are handling the situation combined with a few other elements. The next chapter should be much more interesting.

The comment on the suit comes from the Soldat's tendency to always wear black suits. It kind of pokes fun at the trend.


	19. Cinderella’s Ball

Author's notes: Well, this didn't take nearly as long as the last chapter at least. I can't thank Porthos112 enough for all of his considerable effort in fixing my grammar, bringing the dump truck to fill all the plot holes, and simply being one of the best prereaders that I've ever had. Both he and James Axelrad have been pivotal in making this a far better story than I could on my own. Thanks you guys.

Disclaimer: I own neither Noir nor Ranma ½

**The Fourth Sapling**

By: brindani

Chapter 19: Cinderella's Ball

As the last shred of sunlight disappeared beyond the horizon, thick tendrils of darkness descended upon the landscape of Japan; the night slowly proclaiming its dominance over the sky once more. Lights throughout the city fought to stave off the encroaching gloom, forming a massive collage of shifting shadows. One building out-shone all others, standing prominently against the night. Its pristine outer-walls illuminated from below, revealed monolithic marble statues reminiscent of ancient Greece adorning its sides. Each time the massive doors swung wide, radiant light flooded the plaza, revealing several groups of Japanese ladies awaiting the respective escorts. Each wore a uniquely tailored western style ballroom gown with an outlandish hat to match.

Hushed voices issued from the various gatherings as they discussed the latest gossip, hair tips, or simply how rude the common folk were to gawk from across the street.

In the middle of this scene, one man drew attention. Standing off to the side, intriguingly unattached to any group, the man stared out into the darkness, his startling blue eyes highlighted by the lamppost above. His impeccable white suit with fresh a red rose was an extreme contrast to all of the other men passing by. More than one of the noble ladies fluttered their eyelashes his way, repressed romantic imagination going into overdrive as they coyly watched the mysterious young man.

Ranma was unaware that his presence had become the center of conversation. He was far to anxious to care as Chloe had yet to arrive and it was already… Ranma shifted his wrist into view… 8:23. He had glanced at the gold watch Nodoka insisted he wear at least five times in the past ten minutes. "Mom said it was 'a ladies prerogative to be fashionably late', but this is Chloe!" Ranma whispered under his breath

His eyes restlessly scanned the various groups, aware Chloe would not be in their midst since he had checked a few minutes ago. Concern ate at him as the minutes crawled by. 'Maybe she lost track of time getting ready? Not likely, Chloe doesn't even wear make-up. Maybe she had a visitor? Yeah, someone probably just distracted her for a moment,' Ranma thought, relaxing marginally as he nodded his head. It wasn't long before his eyes flew open. 'What if it was the Soldats? An ambush?!"

Ranma tensed, preparing for a quick leap to the nearest building to rescue his missing partner. The leap faltered when another in a long line of stretch limousines pulled up next to the curb. Something about this one felt different. His breath caught as the chauffer efficiently opened the door.

Firm lithe legs stepped out of the vehicle, standing straight. Background conversation ceased to the ears of one pony-tailed boy. The young woman was stunning. Unlike the other highbred ladies hampered by their bulky dresses from an outdated age, hers was form fitting, almost as if the night had seen fit to descend and attach itself to the greatest perfection it could find. Mouth hanging open, Ranma's eyes traveled further up, finding a young, yet full bodied figure. The faintest trace of blush perfectly highlighted those piercing brown eyes as they carefully examined the figures gawking at her.

Ranma's heart nearly stopped as those dazzling eyes settled on him. Without a sound, the woman glided up to him. Ranma gulped as she stopped, staring deeply into his eyes.

"I'm sorry I'm late." She said with a small bow.

Ranma blinked. 'Late? Do I know this woman?'

"Ranma? Did you hear me?" The woman asked, light concern evident in her voice.

Ranma's expression shifted from confusion to realization as the woman tilted her head.

"Chloe?" Ranma whispered, his eyes widened as they noticed the familiar purplish hair shimmer under the lamplight.

The girl blinked. "Yes, who else were you expecting?" She asked, indignation rising quickly due to Ranma's thoughtlessness.

"It's just… you're so beautiful… I hadn't realized..." Ranma stopped short, turning away to hide an embarrassed blush.

Chloe's eyebrows rose, as did a rosy hue along her cheeks. 'He… he said I look beautiful? He thinks I'm beautiful?' Coming back to herself, she eyed the young man's meticulously pressed white suit. His bright blue eyes framed by his carefully combed black hair which hung loosely in a ponytail. 'He is very handsome.' Chloe's blush darkened, hidden only by Ranma's turned head.

Neither took notice of the glares of envy from those around them.

"We… we had best enter or we will miss your contact." Chloe suggested, gaining control of her faculties first.

Ranma nodded his head. Turning to the building, Ranma offered his arm with a dashing smile.

"Shall we?"

Chloe nodded, accepting his arm, she allowed him to lead her up the walkway. The people parted before them, wild speculation as to their identities running rampant in their wake. The couple took no heed of the pampered upper class as they regally ascended the stairs.

Ranma's foot hesitated on the sixth step, his grand smile losing a hint of its strength. His hesitation brought them both to a stop. Chloe glanced in his direction, a touch of confusion as to their abrupt halt. The pony-tailed boy leaned down slowly, his face drawing near. Chloe's eyes widened even as her mouth suddenly felt dry. He drew closer, his lips mere inches from her own. Her eyes flicked from his eyes to his lips as she attempted to discern his intentions. 'Is he going to…'

"Before we enter I want your promise that what happens here never goes beyond these walls. That includes Altena," he whispered low so only she could hear.

Chloe almost fell down, shocked by the message and… maybe just a little disappointed. When his words sank in, Chloe nearly pulled away, only his strong arm keeping her at his side.

"I share everything with Altena. If this is important, then I will tell her." Chloe informed him even as she ceased her struggle.

"Then we stop here. I've personally guaranteed this person's safety. I can only reveal their identity to those they let me. They gave the okay for you, but no one else." Ranma turned an imploring gaze to the young woman. "Please Chloe, do this for me."

Chloe stared into his luminous eyes, losing herself in their endless depths, she felt herself drowning in those stormy oceans. Her own eyes widened trying to take on those incredible depths, her heart thumbing furiously against her chest.

"I… I guess Altena wouldn't need to know." Chloe offered before shaking her head, breaking the heady spell his imploring gaze cast over her. "But only this once, I don't like to keep things from her." Chloe said, her devotion clear in both her stance and expression.

"Thank you Chloe, thank you for doing this for me." Chloe's heart beat accelerated even under the gently smile Ranma rewarded her with in return for her promise.

She acknowledged him with a nod, relieved that her body hadn't begun trembling.

Turning back towards the building, the large ornate doors swung wide. Two muscular men in grey tailored suits stepped aside and bowed as the couple passed.

Beyond, Ranma nearly gaped in amazement as the large ballroom became visible. His senses were tantalized by the gentle music floating across the room. Dancing to this wondrous melody were dozens of colorfully dressed couples stepping in time with each other. All of this was illuminated by a massive chandelier hanging over-head.

"Your names please?" Ranma blinked at the abrupt question, he hadn't noticed the slender man standing to the side. The goateed individual held a long list in one hand with a pen poised as he stared at them expectantly.

Ranma smiled. "Ranma Ito and Chloe Tanaka," he answered, managing to keep the lie from his face.

"One moment." The man's eyes scanned through the list. Moments later, they widened as he returned his attention to the couple, his smile noticeably widened as he bowed low

"I bid you good evening, Mr. Ito. It is a pleasure to have you and your lovely companion honor our establishment. Please, have a wonderful evening."

"Thank you, I believe we will," Ranma said, returning a much shallower bow. Chloe gazed inquisitively at Ranma as they descended the long curved stairway, entering the ballroom proper.

Ranma didn't notice her expression as his eyes were busily shifting over the amiably chatting couples. Absently he slipped through the crowd, navigated them to a relatively vacant corner.

"Who do they think we are?" Chloe whispered, realizing Ranma wasn't going to offer an explanation on his own.

"Hmmm? Oh, just some important and in fluential people," Ranma answered vaguely as he captured two odd colorful confections from a passing tray. He assumed the items were meant to be hors d'oeuvres of some kind though what eluded him. Handing one to Chloe, he absently sampled the tidbit as he continued his search.

Chloe took the opportunity to observe the room herself. What she found was impressive. Nearly everyone in attendance was a very prominent or powerful figure of society. She also recognized several less known though equally powerful people. Many of these were the dirtiest crime bosses Tokyo would likely ever see. Her eyes narrowed as she spotted one of them discreetly handing money to an '_upstanding'_ politician.

Chloe found herself absently fingering her small collection of concealed knives and nearly laughed at herself when she realized what she was doing.

'Maybe I've been around Ranma far too long,' she thought, uncertain if this would negatively affect her abilities.

"Oh Mister Ito? Mistress Tanaka?" A voice cooed with an American accent.

Chloe turned to face the woman that approached them. 'Someone is calling us by our assumed names. It must be Ranma's contact.'

Ranma smiled as he turned to face the person.

"Ms. Nakamura, it's a pleasure to see you again," Ranma greeted, bowing low to lightly kiss the woman's outstretched hand. 'All of those manners Altena and Mother pounded me with are finally coming in handy,' Ranma thought to himself with a small internal smile.

Chloe examined the unfamiliar woman as she giggled at Ranma's gesture. Nothing about her really stuck out to Chloe. She appeared as just another of the highbred ladies with her overlarge strawberry red dress that extending for several feet around her. She couldn't quite see the face framed by a cascade of blond locks due to the ornate white silk fan.

"Such a charmer, you'll have to be careful of this one." Ms. Nakamura murmured suggestively to Chloe. It was a little odd hearing Japanese with a Georgian accent. Somehow, it seemed to suit the woman.

"Chloe, meet Ms. Nakamura. She is the person that you wanted to meet." Chloe nodded, her guess confirmed. 'Still, she looks more like a scatterbrained noble, not someone who deals in underworld information.'

Such thoughts were cut off as the lady's fan snapped shut, revealing two piercing brown eyes.

"I can assure you, Chloe, that the mask does not reflect the truth." The blond woman said, her accent mysteriously absent.

Chloe widened a little at the familiarity the other woman used.

"What, you do not recognize sweet little ol' me?" her smile widened as Chloe shook her head. "I'll give you a hint. We met when you arrived to pick-up Ranma." When Chloe again shook her head, the woman chuckled. "I'm not surprised; I've undergone many changes since then. Does the name Nabiki mean anything to you?"

Chloe's eyes widened in surprise. A moment later, she carefully reevaluated the woman. Comparing the girl she remembered to the woman that stood before her, she had to admit that everything from her gait to her voice had altered drastically yet appeared natural. Unless told, she would never have guessed. To fool her senses, Nabiki must have used some of the best services available to relearn every nuance of herself. A process Chloe understood to be quite painful.

"You're…"

"Dead? Yes, Ranma certainly killed my reality that night. He left me a reminder that I will stay with me until I die." Nabiki murmured, wincing in phantom pain as she unconsciously touched her side. "He also did an excellent job of splattering my vintage red wine everywhere too." Nabiki replied, no trace of her lapse evident.

"But how?" Chloe asked starting to feel light headed. Altena said this girl was dead and Altena's information was never wrong.

"It's simple, Ranma gave me a choice; assist him in revenge or die for my sins. Since that time, I've come to the conclusion that death would have been far easier." Nabiki said with a casual wave of her hand, undermining her words.

"Why didn't you return to the Soldats?"

Nabiki looked at Chloe incredulously.

"And what is the price of failure? Even if I had been willing to return after what they did, do you think Ranma would have left me alone? I would be dead before the night was over. Besides, blood is thicker than even my desire for power. They hurt my sister, nearly killed her against my orders. If it wasn't for Ranma, she would have died. Be assured, I will have my revenge." Nabiki's expression darkened as she absently fanned herself. The expression disappeared, replaced with a touch of humor. "Actually, being officially dead in the eyes of the Soldats offers a lot of freedom," Nabiki said, her large dress shifting as she shrugged.

Chloe was intrigued, she had never even guessed.

"Oh, that's another thing that I wanted to talk to you about, Ranma." Her intense gaze slammed into the pony-tailed youth. "Why, exactly, did you give those hookers my phone number?" Nabiki asked, her smoldering eyes flaring against his own.

Large beads of sweat formed as Ranma laughed nervously. "Well, I sort'a promised I would help if they got into trouble again and I couldn't give them my number..." Ranma faltered as Nabiki's eyes hardened.

"So giving them a dead person's number made more sense?" Nabiki said, her tone belittling the boy. Ranma gulped as he took a step back under that searing glare. "Or perhaps you forget that I am supposed to be a dead woman? Whatever the case, having me act as your secretary is a quick way to blow everything!" she hissed low so that only Ranma and Chloe could hear.

The furious expression evaporated into a carefree titter as an elderly gentleman and his wife approached.

"Ah, Ms. Nakamura, I'm so glad I caught up with you. I must thank you again for securing an invitation to this wonderful event. My wife has been adamant in coming after your delightful descriptions." The white bearded man said, his pressed formal military uniform prominently displayed several glittering medals under the light.

"Admiral, it is always a pleasure to see you." Nabiki said, her Georgian accent back even as she lightly curtsied to the gentleman. "As for the invitation, it was simply my pleasure." Nabiki gushed, the very picture of a carefree woman from the states.

"Indeed, I was hesitant at first, but now that I have had the chance to partake in such exquisite entertainment, I feel most honored by your gratitude. Please, you must allow me to repay your kindness."

Ranma and Chloe watched as Nabiki conversed with the two, making plans to meet later.

Chloe was amazed by the switch in manner and voice. It happened almost instantaneously and just before the admiral came into hearing range. It was a startling feat given the innumerable people meandering around them.

When the couple left, Nabiki returned to Ranma and Chloe. Said boy tugged at his pony-tail nervously.

"I'm sorry about giving them your number, I wasn't thinking…"

"Obviously, it's a trait I've had to deal with on a continuous basis. Unfortunately for me, I doubt it will stop anytime soon." Nabiki sighed with frustration. "Despite your foul-up, I managed to salvage the situation. I might have even found a way to benefit. Those girls have a fairly substantial information network. Most of which just can't be found anywhere else." Nabiki said, a smirk quickly growing. "I now have quite an appreciation for pillow talk." Ranma blushed as he slowly realized Nabiki implications. "As for you…" Nabiki pointed her fan as if it were a sword directly at Ranma's face. "…I found an appropriate punishment for your little stunt." Ranma chuckled nervously. It was never a good thing when Nabiki got that look in her eyes.

"What's that?" Ranma asked as the seconds stretched painfully.

"Easy, there were a couple of girls very interested in personally thanking the 'gun toting play-boy bunny girl'. When I happened to mention that their rescuer was not a heroine, but rather a knight in shinning armor, interest ran rampant." Ranma's face paled. He had spent the greater part of a year with three girls making his life a living hell, now there were even more? "It get's better, Ranma dear. You've started a little revolution amongst the prostitution community. The girls told others and the story spread like wildfire. From what Samantha tells me, all of those bunnies from last night want to personally thank you."

"fif…fifty girls." Ranma choked out.

"No, no, Ranma, nearly a thousand and growing." Ranma nearly collapsed. Only a supporting hand offered by Chloe kept him from the floor.

Chloe could almost see stars circle Ranma's head. She couldn't blame him, she felt a slight… annoyance creep through her at the news.

Regaining his footing, Ranma considered Nabiki critically.

It didn't take long for the dazed expression to fade, a confident smile in its place.

"No way, they would never have believed you so easily," Ranma proclaimed silently, assured he had found a hole in Nabiki's little joke.

"You're absolutely right, they didn't believe a single word," Ranma smiled, relieved he wouldn't be plunged into that horrible nightmare again. "...at first." The smile vanished. "In exchange for some very valuable information, I provided the standard tapes. Nothing fancy, just a small scene that showed the transformation. They were fascinated by that one. Sounds like even the hard core lesbians want a piece of the action." Nabiki smiled sweetly at Ranma.

By this time, Chloe was fully supporting Ranma's limp form, not looking pleased herself.

"Hee, hee. Don't let it worry you too much, the only time you have to make an appearance is if someone tries to put a stranglehold on them. Then again, you might want to watch your back. I've heard rumors that several of the more aggressive girls have taken to scouring Nerima in their spare time. Such devotion is admirable, don't you think so Mr. Ito?"

"Why did you do that, Nabiki? You know we have enough problems as it is. That kind of attention can only cause problems," Ranma demanded, regaining enough composure to only need partial assistance to steady himself.

"Well you weren't the one who had to cover for all of the extra phone calls. A lot of influential people became very suspicious. Besides, like I said, your devoted fan club comes with an excellent network. Some information even pertains to what we are doing."

Ranma raised an eyebrow askance.

"What might that be?"

"There are some people looking for you."

"A little late there, Nabs. We already know that." Ranma said.

"No, this doesn't sound like more of the black suits. There are two girls, one an attractive blond; the other a young brunette. They've been discrete about their search so far, but they are definitely looking for you." Chloe's attention became riveted to Nabiki.

"I see, did your information happen to come with an explanation of why these girls are after me?" Ranma asked, curiously meeting Nabiki's gaze.

"No, like I've already said, they are being discrete. What little we do know is that they are carrying a picture for both of your sides and believe you to be two different people," Nabiki finished.

"Hmmm," out of the corner of his eye, Ranma caught a glimpse of Chloe staring at Nabiki strangely. "You wouldn't happen to know who these people are, would you Chloe?" Ranma asked turning under his own power to face the girl.

The young purplish haired assassin's sharp eyes turned to Ranma. "I may, but they shouldn't be here. Even if they were, they shouldn't be searching for you in either guise."

"So who do you think they are?" Nabiki asked, her expression guarded.

"They may be the other group of Noir candidates." Chloe answered, meeting Ranma's intense gaze with one of her own, the meaning of this information lost on neither of them.

"Noir, hmmm it looks like the trouble we've caused has finally forced our enemies to bring things to a head." Nabiki said, fanning herself.

"Apparently," Ranma replied absently.

"Now we just have to decide what to do with them? Given some choice misdirection, we could easily have them running in circles for months." Nabiki said, tapping her fan thoughtfully on her chin.

Ranma's eyes went distant, looking past the grand ball progressing around them. "No, we will lead them to us."

Both Chloe and Nabiki looked at Ranma incredulously.

"You can't be serious. If the enemy sent these two, there can only be one reason, they are after your head." Seeing no change in his expression, Nabiki repressed a growl. "If that was too complex for your simple little mind, then how about this: They. Are. Here. To. Kill. You." Nabiki cut each word off, barely resisting the urge to slap the boy over the head to knock such a ridiculous idea out.

"Perhaps, but I need to discuss some things with them."

"What discussion could possibly be worth risking your life for? I doubt they have any more information regarding our enemy than we have already."

Ranma critically eyed Nabiki. "It's something important, but I can't tell you what for now."

"Something you can't tell me? Please, we are in this together and you know it; my brains and your thick headed brawn out for revenge. That was the deal from the beginning, so start talking!" Nabiki demanded, lancing Ranma with her most piercing gaze. She was startled when Ranma appeared completely unruffled.

"I'm sorry Nabiki, but the reason I need to meet them has nothing to do with revenge. I promise you will benefit in the end. All I can say is I've already been sworn to secrecy. I will tell you the moment I receive permission."

Nabiki started to growl again. "Stupid martial artist jocks and their asinine promises," she mumbled under her breath. "You listen to me," Nabiki emphasized by drawing close, jabbing her finger into his chest. "If you get your stupid head shot, all the knowledge in the world won't do me a hill of beans worth of good against these people. I need your abilities and I won't let you foolishly kill yourself before you've served your purpose."

"I love you too, Nabiki." The fully formed growl was suddenly accompanied by a twitch on her brow.

"Do not take these two lightly." Both Nabiki and Ranma turned to Chloe who looked to be doing some thinking of her own. "They are professional assassins of the highest caliber. If they are truly here for your life, it will be nearly impossible to dissuade them without killing them," she said in a low voice.

"For once in you life, listen to the voice of reason," Nabiki voice bordered on thinly veiled desperation.

Ranma closed his eyes, sighing. "I know this isn't going to be easy, but it is something that needs to be done." Ranma reopened his eyes, staring at Nabiki. "I promise you that this is for both of us, so please, can you help me do this?"

Nabiki nearly bumped into someone behind her in surprise when she found unconcealed pleading on Ranma's face. Her own features slowly darkened before she shook her head.

Ranma slumped where he stood. 'I could try to force her, but it would more likely backfire. I need her abilities as much as she needs mine. If only she would believe me just this once that this is for her own good.' Ranma thought darkly.

When Ranma returned his gaze to the woman in front of him, he recognized a touch of fear coloring Nabiki's cheeks.

"I guess I have to accept your decision, Nabiki, as this has nothing to do with our deal." The air of superiority swiftly returned to the woman. "But I will find a way to carry this out with or without your help."

"Oh please, you wouldn't be able to find those girls on your own if they were in the next building," Nabiki nearly snorted, utterly assured of her reasoning.

Ranma's face fell as he realized that she was right, without Nabiki's help, he would be searching blindly, a very deadly position when up against professionals in his field.

"I…do need to find them, but without help…" Ranma trailed off, both Nabiki and Chloe watching him with an equally intense searching gaze.

"Now that we have that out of the way, I have a list of targets that may provide leads given the right…motivation." Nabiki smirked, holding out a slip of paper unobtrusively. Ranma took the document without comment, his downtrodden expression annoying Nabiki.

To distract him, Nabiki snickered, "You must have been something else last night, because from what I heard not one of the girls leaked anything. You've always had a way with the ladies." Nabiki hinted, eyeing Chloe who remained attached to Ranma's arm despite having regained his composure some time ago.

Chloe blinked, staring down at thier arms as if realizing for the first time that they were still joined. Her expression became uncertain, yet she remained where she was.

Nabiki's smirk only grew before she returned her attention to Ranma. "That's all I needed to tell you for the moment. Get your mind off of those two assassins, they are nothing but trouble. Besides, you have the whole night, why not make the most of it dancing to the music? After all, you won't find a more talented group of musicians in Japan." She nearly laughed as Ranma's eyes bulged, his past concerns suddenly distant. She quickly turned away, engaging in conversation with an influential looking man.

Thoughts of his earlier encounter with the Saotome clan fled as Ranma wearily eyed the dance floor.

Chloe eyed the dance floor as well, the difference readily apparent as hers held anticipation. She loved to dance. She just didn't have many opportunities.

"Come on Ranma, let's go." Chloe said, nearly dragging the poor boy along in her rare display of enthusiasm.

Ranma stopped her cold, looking panicked.

"I… can't," he managed to choke out.

Chloe turned to stare at him. "What? Don't you feel like dancing?" Chloe asked, staring at him critically.

"I… yeah, that's it. I don't feel like it right now. Why don't we just call it a night?" Ranma nearly pleaded, trying his best to drag Chloe in the opposite direction only to find her blocking his path. Ranma's collar sudden felt constricted under her intense gaze.

"You don't know how to dance, do you?" Chloe questioned, the slightest hint of a smirk growing on her lips. "The greatest martial artist in the world and he doesn't even know how to dance. How… disappointing." She waved him off, moving towards the door.

"I can too dance." Ranma blurted, grabbing a hold of her shoulder. He cringed back as he realized his mistake.

"Prove it," Chloe responded, taunting him with an outstretched hand.

Against his better judgment, Ranma tentatively accepted the hand. Before he had a chance to retract it, he found his entire arm captured. Chloe, swiftly using the leverage, navigated him through the crowded ballroom. She continued to skirt the outer edge until she reached the maestro coordinating the music. As the current song ended, she caught his attention amongst the polite applause.

The maestro stared down at Chloe jovially; his eyes sparkled as she whispered into his ear. He shot Ranma a considering look before whispering back, giggling when Chloe blushed lightly.

Going back to the podium, he efficiently issued instructions to the musicians.

"What was that all about?" Ranma asked Chloe as she rejoined him.

"Nothing, now, shall we?" Ranma sighed as Chloe gently led him out where several others waited for the music to start. More then one smiled as gentle music floated across the hall. .

Standing in the middle of couples coming as close as their apparel allowed, Ranma stood, looking around at the others in confusion. Chloe shook her head, grabbing one of Ranma's hands, placing it around her waist while positioning the other on her shoulder. His hands set, Chloe lowered her own around Ranma's waist, bringing them together.

Chloe winced as Ranma's feet found her own almost immediately.

"Sorry," Ranma whispered, his nerves screaming at him to leave immediately.

After the fourth repetition, Chloe decided this was getting old fast. 'But how to help him?' Chloe considered even as she winced under another toe crunch.

In a burst of inspiration, she realized the answer.

"Ranma?"

Said boy had a hard time looking at his dance partner, feeling as awkward as if he was ice skating again.

"Look at me Ranma." The boy hesitantly looked at the slightly shorter girl. "Don't think of this as dancing, think of it like performing one of your kata. A very simple kata compared to the ones I've seen you do."

Blinking several times, a slow smile spread across Ranma's face. His perception shifted, formidable battle skills honed to a fine edge coming to bear on the situation. He analyzed everything, taking in each dancing couple, dissecting movement with a speed that would leave a supercomputer in the dust. His natural grace exerted itself as Ranma began to lead. Chloe only smiled as she followed along with one of the finest dancers she had encountered.

Music changed, upbeat, and classical, each respective dance performed flawlessly by the couple, drawing many stares of awe and envy from those around them. The two couldn't have cared less, each lost themselves in the music, only one other existed, moving in flawless coordination.

The night slipped away, and through it all, each held a grin.

* * *

Author's end notes: I don't know if I ever mentioned it, but I love a good twist, especially one that you never see coming. I'm extremely pleased to say that there were several people that questioned whether Nabiki had died, (Victor Khimenko, Vampwriter, and hmr) and one person who guessed about the champaign splattered on the wall along with the blood (Kadunta). 

Think that one was easy? Don't worry, there are plenty more where that came from.

brindani


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